TY - JOUR A1 - Welter, Nils A1 - Wagner, Angelo A1 - Furtwängler, Rhoikos A1 - Melchior, Patrick A1 - Kager, Leo A1 - Vokuhl, Christian A1 - Schenk, Jens-Peter A1 - Meier, Clemens Magnus A1 - Siemer, Stefan A1 - Gessler, Manfred A1 - Graf, Norbert T1 - Correction: Welter et al. Characteristics of nephroblastoma/nephroblastomatosis in children with a clinically reported underlying malformation or cancer predisposition syndrome. Cancers 2021, 13, 5016 JF - Cancers N2 - In the original article [1] there was a mistake in Table 2 as published. Table 2 contains wrong percentages in lines Bilateral disease and Patients with CPS or GU. For this reason the table should be replaced with the correct one as shown below. KW - nephroblastomatosis Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-250135 SN - 2072-6694 VL - 13 IS - 22 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gupta, Shishir K. A1 - Srivastava, Mugdha A1 - Osmanoglu, Özge A1 - Xu, Zhuofei A1 - Brakhage, Axel A. A1 - Dandekar, Thomas T1 - Aspergillus fumigatus versus genus Aspergillus: conservation, adaptive evolution and specific virulence genes JF - Microorganisms N2 - Aspergillus is an important fungal genus containing economically important species, as well as pathogenic species of animals and plants. Using eighteen fungal species of the genus Aspergillus, we conducted a comprehensive investigation of conserved genes and their evolution. This also allows us to investigate the selection pressure driving the adaptive evolution in the pathogenic species A. fumigatus. Among single-copy orthologs (SCOs) for A. fumigatus and the closely related species A. fischeri, we identified 122 versus 50 positively selected genes (PSGs), respectively. Moreover, twenty conserved genes of unknown function were established to be positively selected and thus important for adaption. A. fumigatus PSGs interacting with human host proteins show over-representation of adaptive, symbiosis-related, immunomodulatory and virulence-related pathways, such as the TGF-β pathway, insulin receptor signaling, IL1 pathway and interfering with phagosomal GTPase signaling. Additionally, among the virulence factor coding genes, secretory and membrane protein-coding genes in multi-copy gene families, 212 genes underwent positive selection and also suggest increased adaptation, such as fungal immune evasion mechanisms (aspf2), siderophore biosynthesis (sidD), fumarylalanine production (sidE), stress tolerance (atfA) and thermotolerance (sodA). These genes presumably contribute to host adaptation strategies. Genes for the biosynthesis of gliotoxin are shared among all the close relatives of A. fumigatus as an ancient defense mechanism. Positive selection plays a crucial role in the adaptive evolution of A. fumigatus. The genome-wide profile of PSGs provides valuable targets for further research on the mechanisms of immune evasion, antimycotic targeting and understanding fundamental virulence processes. KW - molecular evolution KW - phylogenetic analysis KW - adaptation KW - recombination KW - positive selection KW - human pathogenic fungi KW - genus Aspergillus KW - Aspergillus fumigatus Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-246318 SN - 2076-2607 VL - 9 IS - 10 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wagner, Martin A1 - Slaghuis, Jörg A1 - Göbel, Werner A1 - Vázquez-Boland, José Antonio A1 - Rychli, Kathrin A1 - Schmitz-Esser, Stephan T1 - Virulence pattern analysis of three Listeria monocytogenes lineage I epidemic strains with distinct outbreak histories JF - Microorganisms N2 - Strains of the food-borne pathogen Listeria (L.) monocytogenes have diverse virulence potential. This study focused on the virulence of three outbreak strains: the CC1 strain PF49 (serovar 4b) from a cheese-associated outbreak in Switzerland, the clinical CC2 strain F80594 (serovar 4b), and strain G6006 (CC3, serovar 1/2a), responsible for a large gastroenteritis outbreak in the USA due to chocolate milk. We analysed the genomes and characterized the virulence in vitro and in vivo. Whole-genome sequencing revealed a high conservation of the major virulence genes. Minor deviations of the gene contents were found in the autolysins Ami, Auto, and IspC. Moreover, different ActA variants were present. Strain PF49 and F80594 showed prolonged survival in the liver of infected mice. Invasion and intracellular proliferation were similar for all strains, but the CC1 and CC2 strains showed increased spreading in intestinal epithelial Caco2 cells compared to strain G6006. Overall, this study revealed long-term survival of serovar 4b strains F80594 and PF49 in the liver of mice. Future work will be needed to determine the genes and molecular mechanism behind the long-term survival of L. monocytogenes strains in organs. KW - pathogenicity KW - whole-genome analysis KW - prolonged survival Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-245093 SN - 2076-2607 VL - 9 IS - 8 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Welter, Nils A1 - Wagner, Angelo A1 - Furtwängler, Rhoikos A1 - Melchior, Patrick A1 - Kager, Leo A1 - Vokuhl, Christian A1 - Schenk, Jens-Peter A1 - Meier, Clemens Magnus A1 - Siemer, Stefan A1 - Gessler, Manfred A1 - Graf, Norbert T1 - Characteristics of nephroblastoma/nephroblastomatosis in children with a clinically reported underlying malformation or cancer predisposition syndrome JF - Cancers N2 - (1) Background: about 10% of Wilms Tumor (WT) patients have a malformation or cancer predisposition syndrome (CPS) with causative germline genetic or epigenetic variants. Knowledge on CPS is essential for genetic counselling. (2) Methods: this retrospective analysis focused on 2927 consecutive patients with WTs registered between 1989 and 2017 in the SIOP/GPOH studies. (3) Results: Genitourinary malformations (GU, N = 66, 2.3%), Beckwith-Wiedemann spectrum (BWS, N = 32, 1.1%), isolated hemihypertrophy (IHH, N = 29, 1.0%), Denys-Drash syndrome (DDS, N = 24, 0.8%) and WAGR syndrome (N = 20, 0.7%) were reported most frequently. Compared to others, these patients were younger at WT diagnosis (median age 24.5 months vs. 39.0 months), had smaller tumors (349.4 mL vs. 487.5 mL), less often metastasis (8.2% vs. 18%), but more often nephroblastomatosis (12.9% vs. 1.9%). WT with IHH was associated with blastemal WT and DDS with stromal subtype. Bilateral WTs were common in WAGR (30%), DDS (29%) and BWS (31%). Chemotherapy induced reduction in tumor volume was poor in DDS (0.4% increase) and favorable in BWS (86.9% reduction). The event-free survival (EFS) of patients with BWS was significantly (p = 0.002) worse than in others. (4) Conclusions: CPS should be considered in WTs with specific clinical features resulting in referral to a geneticist. Their outcome was not always favorable. KW - nephroblastoma KW - clinical malformations KW - cancer predisposition syndromes KW - tumor surveillance KW - outcome Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-248434 SN - 2072-6694 VL - 13 IS - 19 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hempelmann, Alexander A1 - Hartleb, Laura A1 - van Straaten, Monique A1 - Hashemi, Hamidreza A1 - Zeelen, Johan P. A1 - Bongers, Kevin A1 - Papavasiliou, F. Nina A1 - Engstler, Markus A1 - Stebbins, C. Erec A1 - Jones, Nicola G. T1 - Nanobody-mediated macromolecular crowding induces membrane fission and remodeling in the African trypanosome JF - Cell Reports N2 - The dense variant surface glycoprotein (VSG) coat of African trypanosomes represents the primary host-pathogen interface. Antigenic variation prevents clearing of the pathogen by employing a large repertoire of antigenically distinct VSG genes, thus neutralizing the host’s antibody response. To explore the epitope space of VSGs, we generate anti-VSG nanobodies and combine high-resolution structural analysis of VSG-nanobody complexes with binding assays on living cells, revealing that these camelid antibodies bind deeply inside the coat. One nanobody causes rapid loss of cellular motility, possibly due to blockage of VSG mobility on the coat, whose rapid endocytosis and exocytosis are mechanistically linked to Trypanosoma brucei propulsion and whose density is required for survival. Electron microscopy studies demonstrate that this loss of motility is accompanied by rapid formation and shedding of nanovesicles and nanotubes, suggesting that increased protein crowding on the dense membrane can be a driving force for membrane fission in living cells. KW - African trypanosome KW - host-pathogen interaction KW - variant surface glycoproteins KW - immune epitope mapping KW - structural biology KW - nanovesicle formation KW - nanotube formation KW - protein crowding KW - membrane fission Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-270285 VL - 37 IS - 5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kriegel, Peter A1 - Matevski, Dragan A1 - Schuldt, Andreas T1 - Monoculture and mixture-planting of non-native Douglas fir alters species composition, but promotes the diversity of ground beetles in a temperate forest system JF - Biodiversity and Conservation N2 - Planting non-native tree species, like Douglas fir in temperate European forest systems, is encouraged to mitigate effects of climate change. However, Douglas fir monocultures often revealed negative effects on forest biota, while effects of mixtures with native tree species on forest ecosystems are less well understood. We investigated effects of three tree species (Douglas fir, Norway spruce, native European beech), on ground beetles in temperate forests of Germany. Beetles were sampled in monocultures of each tree species and broadleaf-conifer mixtures with pitfall traps, and environmental variables were assessed around each trap. We used linear mixed models in a two-step procedure to disentangle effects of environment and tree species identity on ground beetle abundance, species richness, functional diversity and species assemblage structure. Contradictory to our expectations, ground beetle abundance and functional diversity was highest in pure Douglas fir stands, while tree mixtures showed intermediate values between pure coniferous and pure beech stands. The main drivers of these patterns were only partially dependent on tree species identity, which highlights the importance of structural features in forest stands. However, our study revealed distinct shifts in assemblage structure between pure beech and pure Douglas fir stands, which were only partially eased through mixture planting. Our findings suggest that effects of planting non-native trees on associated biodiversity can be actively modified by promoting beneficial forest structures. Nevertheless, integrating non-native tree species, even in mixtures with native trees, will invariably alter assemblage structures of associated biota, which can compromise conservation efforts targeted at typical species composition. KW - mixed-species forestry KW - exotic species KW - Pseudotsuga menziesii KW - functional diversity KW - insects KW - microhabitats Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-269017 SN - 1572-9710 VL - 30 IS - 5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Peixoto, Joana A1 - Janaki-Raman, Sudha A1 - Schlicker, Lisa A1 - Schmitz, Werner A1 - Walz, Susanne A1 - Winkelkotte, Alina M. A1 - Herold-Mende, Christel A1 - Soares, Paula A1 - Schulze, Almut A1 - Lima, Jorge T1 - Integrated metabolomics and transcriptomics analysis of monolayer and neurospheres from established glioblastoma cell lines JF - Cancers N2 - Altered metabolic processes contribute to carcinogenesis by modulating proliferation, survival and differentiation. Tumours are composed of different cell populations, with cancer stem-like cells being one of the most prominent examples. This specific pool of cells is thought to be responsible for cancer growth and recurrence and plays a particularly relevant role in glioblastoma (GBM), the most lethal form of primary brain tumours. Here, we have analysed the transcriptome and metabolome of an established GBM cell line (U87) and a patient-derived GBM stem-like cell line (NCH644) exposed to neurosphere or monolayer culture conditions. By integrating transcriptome and metabolome data, we identified key metabolic pathways and gene signatures that are associated with stem-like and differentiated states in GBM cells, and demonstrated that neurospheres and monolayer cells differ substantially in their metabolism and gene regulation. Furthermore, arginine biosynthesis was identified as the most significantly regulated pathway in neurospheres, although individual nodes of this pathway were distinctly regulated in the two cellular systems. Neurosphere conditions, as opposed to monolayer conditions, cause a transcriptomic and metabolic rewiring that may be crucial for the regulation of stem-like features, where arginine biosynthesis may be a key metabolic pathway. Additionally, TCGA data from GBM patients showed significant regulation of specific components of the arginine biosynthesis pathway, providing further evidence for the importance of this metabolic pathway in GBM. KW - glioblastoma KW - neurospheres KW - monolayer KW - metabolome KW - transcriptome KW - arginine metabolism Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-234110 SN - 2072-6694 VL - 13 IS - 6 ER - TY - THES A1 - Staus, Madlen T1 - Glutathione-dependent reprogramming in melanoma T1 - Glutathion-abhängige Reprogrammierung im Melanom N2 - These days, treatment of melanoma patients relies on targeted therapy with BRAF/MEK inhibitors and on immunotherapy. About half of all patients initially respond to existing therapies. Nevertheless, the identification of alternative therapies for melanoma patients with intrinsic or acquired resistance is of great importance. In melanoma, antioxidants play an essential role in the maintenance of the redox homeostasis. Therefore, disruption of the redox homeostasis is regarded as highly therapeutically relevant and is the focus of the present work. An adequate supply of cysteine is essential for the production of the most important intracellular antioxidants, such as glutathione. In the present work, it was investigated whether the depletion of cysteine and glutathione is therapeutically useful. Depletion of glutathione in melanoma cells could be achieved by blocking cysteine supply, glutathione synthesis, and NADPH regeneration. As expected, this led to an increased level of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Surprisingly, however, these changes did not impair the proliferation and survival of the melanoma cells. In contrast, glutathione depletion led to cellular reprogramming which was characterized by the induction of mesenchymal genes and the repression of differentiation markers (phenotypic switch). This was accompanied by an increased migration and invasion potential which was favored by the induction of the transcription factor FOSL1. To study in vivo reprogramming, Gclc, the first and rate-limiting enzyme in glutathione synthesis, was knocked out by CRISPR/Cas9 in murine melanoma cells. The cells were devoid of glutathione, but were fully viable and showed a phenotypic switch, the latter only in MITF-expressing B16F1 cells and not in MITF-deficient D4M3A.781 cells. Following subcutaneous injection into immunocompetent C57BL/6 mice, Gclc knockout B16F1 cells grew more aggressively and resulted in an earlier tumor onset than B16F1 control cells. In summary, this work demonstrates that inhibition of cysteine supply and thus, glutathione synthesis leads to cellular reprogramming in melanoma. In this context, melanoma cells show metastatic capabilities, promoting a more aggressive form of the disease. N2 - Die Behandlung von Melanompatienten beruht heutzutage auf der gerichteten Therapie mit BRAF/MEK Inhibitoren und auf der Immuntherapie. Circa die Hälfte aller Patienten spricht zunächst auf die vorhandenen Therapien an. Dennoch ist die Identifizierung alternativer Therapieansätze für Melanompatienten mit intrinsischer oder erworbener Resistenz von großer Wichtigkeit. Im Melanom spielen Antioxidanzien eine essenzielle Rolle zur Aufrechterhaltung der Redox-Homöostase. Eine Störung der Redox-Homöostase wird daher als therapeutisch hochrelevant betrachtet und steht im Fokus der vorliegenden Arbeit. Eine ausreichende Versorgung mit Cystein ist essenziell zur Produktion der wichtigsten intrazellulären Antioxidanzien wie dem Glutathion. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurde untersucht, ob die Depletion von Cystein und Glutathion therapeutisch nützlich ist. Eine Depletion von Glutathion in Melanomzellen konnte durch eine Blockierung der Cysteinversorgung, der Glutathionsynthese und der NADPH-Regeneration erreicht werden. Dies führte wie erwartet zu einem erhöhten Level von reaktiven Sauerstoffspezies (ROS). Überraschenderweise beeinträchtigten diese Veränderungen jedoch nicht die Proliferation und das Überleben der Melanomzellen. Im Gegenteil führte die Glutathion-Depletion zu einer zellulären Reprogrammierung, die durch die Induktion mesenchymaler Gene und der Repression von Differenzierungsmarkern gekennzeichnet war (phenotypic switch). Dies ging mit einem erhöhten Migrations- und Invasionspotential einher, welches durch die Induktion des Transkriptionsfaktors FOSL1 begünstigt wurde. Für die Untersuchung der Reprogrammierung in vivo wurde Gclc, das erste und geschwindigkeitsbestimmende Enzym der Glutathionsynthese, mittels CRISPR/Cas9 in murinen Melanomzellen ausgeknockt. Die Zellen waren voll lebensfähig und zeigten erwartungsgemäß reduzierte Glutathionlevel und einen phenotypic switch. Letzterer zeigte sich jedoch nur in MITF-exprimierenden B16F1 Zellen und nicht in MITF-defizienten D4M3A.781 Zellen. Nach subkutaner Injektion in immunkompetente C57BL/6 Mäuse wuchsen die Gclc-knockout B16F1 Zellen aggressiver und führten zu einer früheren Tumorentstehung als B16F1 Kontrollzellen. Zusammenfassend zeigt diese Arbeit, dass die Hemmung der Cysteinversorgung und somit der Glutathionmenge im Melanom zu einer Reprogrammierung führt, bei der Melanomzellen metastasierende Fähigkeiten aufweisen und somit zu einer aggressiveren Form der Erkrankung führen. KW - Melanom KW - Glutathion KW - Cystein KW - Phenotypic switch Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-168424 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rother, Lisa A1 - Kraft, Nadine A1 - Smith, Dylan B. A1 - El Jundi, Basil A1 - Gill, Richard J. A1 - Pfeiffer, Keram T1 - A micro-CT-based standard brain atlas of the bumblebee JF - Cell and Tissue Research N2 - In recent years, bumblebees have become a prominent insect model organism for a variety of biological disciplines, particularly to investigate learning behaviors as well as visual performance. Understanding these behaviors and their underlying neurobiological principles requires a clear understanding of brain anatomy. Furthermore, to be able to compare neuronal branching patterns across individuals, a common framework is required, which has led to the development of 3D standard brain atlases in most of the neurobiological insect model species. Yet, no bumblebee 3D standard brain atlas has been generated. Here we present a brain atlas for the buff-tailed bumblebee Bombus terrestris using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) scans as a source for the raw data sets, rather than traditional confocal microscopy, to produce the first ever micro-CT-based insect brain atlas. We illustrate the advantages of the micro-CT technique, namely, identical native resolution in the three cardinal planes and 3D structure being better preserved. Our Bombus terrestris brain atlas consists of 30 neuropils reconstructed from ten individual worker bees, with micro-CT allowing us to segment neuropils completely intact, including the lamina, which is a tissue structure often damaged when dissecting for immunolabeling. Our brain atlas can serve as a platform to facilitate future neuroscience studies in bumblebees and illustrates the advantages of micro-CT for specific applications in insect neuroanatomy. KW - neuropils KW - Bombus terrestris KW - insect standard brain atlas KW - iterative shape averaging KW - reconstruction Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-267783 SN - 1432-0878 VL - 386 IS - 1 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Leidinger, Ludwig A1 - Vedder, Daniel A1 - Cabral, Juliano Sarmento T1 - Temporal environmental variation may impose differential selection on both genomic and ecological traits JF - Oikos N2 - The response of populations and species to changing conditions determines how community composition will change functionally, including via trait shifts. Selection from standing variation has been suggested to be more efficient than acquiring new mutations. Yet, studies on community trait composition and trait selection largely focus on phenotypic variation in ecological traits, whereas the underlying genomic traits remain understudied. Using a genome‐explicit, niche‐ and individual‐based model, we address the potential interactions between genomic and ecological traits shaping communities under an environmental selective forcing, namely temporal positively autocorrelated environmental fluctuation. In this model, all ecological traits are explicitly coded by the genome. For our experiments, we initialized 90 replicate communities, each with ca 350 initial species, characterized by random genomic and ecological trait combinations, on a 2D spatially explicit landscape with two orthogonal gradients (temperature and resource use). We exposed each community to two contrasting scenarios: without (i.e. static environments) and with temporal variation. We then analyzed emerging compositions of both genomic and ecological traits at the community, population and genomic levels. Communities in variable environments were species poorer than in static environments, and populations more abundant, whereas genomes had lower genetic linkage, mean genetic variation and a non‐significant tendency towards higher numbers of genes. The surviving genomes (i.e. those selected by variable environments) coded for enhanced environmental tolerance and smaller biomass, which resulted in faster life cycles and thus also in increased potential for evolutionary rescue. Under temporal environmental variation, larger, less linked genomes retained more variation in mean dispersal ability at the population level than at genomic level, whereas the opposite trend emerged for biomass. Our results provide clues to how sexually‐reproducing diploid plant communities might react to variable environments and highlights the importance of genomic traits and their interaction with ecological traits for eco‐evolutionary responses to changing climates. KW - environmental variability KW - genomic traits KW - mechanistic model KW - rapid evolution KW - standing variation Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-238945 VL - 130 IS - 7 SP - 1100 EP - 1115 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sponsler, Douglas B. A1 - Bratman, Eve Z. T1 - Beekeeping in, of or for the city? A socioecological perspective on urban apiculture JF - People and Nature N2 - The term ‘urban beekeeping’ connotes a host of meanings—sociopolitical, commercial, ecological and personal—beyond the mere description of where bees and beekeepers happen to coincide. Yet, these meanings are seldom articulated explicitly or brought into critical engagement with the relevant fields of urban ecology and political ecology. Beginning with a brief account of the history of urban beekeeping in the United States, we draw upon urban ecological theory to construct a conceptual model of urban beekeeping that distinguishes beekeeping in, of and for the city. In our model, beekeeping in the city describes the mere importation of the traditionally rural practice of beekeeping into urban spaces for the private reasons of the individual beekeeper, whereas beekeeping of the city describes beekeeping that is consciously tailored to the urban context, often accompanied by (semi)professionalization of beekeepers and the formation of local expert communities (i.e. beekeeping associations). Beekeeping for the city describes a shift in mindset in which beekeeping is directed to civic ends beyond the boundaries of the beekeeping community per se. Using this framework, we identify and discuss specific socioecological assets and liabilities of urban beekeeping, and how these relate to beekeeping in, of and for the city. We then formulate actionable guidelines for maturing the practice of urban beekeeping into a beneficent and self‐critical form of urban ecological citizenship; these include fostering self‐regulation within the beekeeping community, harnessing beekeeping as a ‘gateway’ experience for a broader rapprochement between urban residents and nature, and recognizing the political‐ecological context of beekeeping with respect to matters of socioecological justice. KW - environmental justice KW - honey bee KW - multispecies studies KW - policy KW - pollinator KW - urban greening Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-239949 VL - 3 IS - 3 SP - 550 EP - 559 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kriegel, Peter A1 - Fritze, Michael‐Andreas A1 - Thorn, Simon T1 - Surface temperature and shrub cover drive ground beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) assemblages in short‐rotation coppices JF - Agricultural and Forest Entomology N2 - Increasing demand for biomass has led to an on‐going intensification of fuel wood plantations with possible negative effects on open land biodiversity. Hence, ecologists increasingly call for measures that reduce those negative effects on associated biodiversity. However, our knowledge about the efficiency of such measures remains scarce. We investigated the effects of gap implementation in short rotation coppices (SRCs) on carabid diversity and assemblage composition over 3 years, with pitfall traps in gaps, edges and interiors. In parallel, we quantified soil surface temperature, shrub‐ and herb cover. Edges had the highest number of species and abundances per trap, whereas rarefied species richness was significantly lower in short rotation coppice interiors than in other habitat types. Carabid community composition differed significantly between habitat types. The main environmental drivers were temperature for number of species and abundance and shrub cover for rarefied species richness. We found significantly higher rarefied species richness in gaps compared with interiors. Hence, we argue that gap implementation benefits overall diversity in short rotation coppices. Furthermore, the differences in species community composition between habitat types through increased species turnover support carabid diversity in short rotation coppices. These positive effects were largely attributed to microclimate conditions. However, to maintain positive effects, continuous management of herb layer might be necessary. KW - Carabidae KW - fuel wood KW - short‐rotation coppice KW - shrub‐cover KW - temperature Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-239873 VL - 23 IS - 4 SP - 400 EP - 410 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wolf, Matthias T1 - How to teach about what is a species JF - Biology N2 - To ask students what a species is always has something rhetorical about it. Too quickly comes the rote answer, often learned by heart without ever thinking about it: “A species is a reproductive community of populations (reproductively isolated from others), which occupies a specific niche in nature” (Mayr 1982). However, do two people look alike because they are twins or are they twins because they look alike? “Two organisms do not belong to the same species because they mate and reproduce, but they only are able to do so because they belong to the same species” (Mahner and Bunge 1997). Unfortunately, most biology (pre-university) teachers have no opinion on whether species are real or conceptual, simply because they have never been taught the question themselves, but rather one answer they still pass on to their students today, learned by heart without ever thinking about it. Species are either real or conceptual and, in my opinion, it is this “or” that we should teach about. Only then can we discuss those fundamental questions such as who or what is selected, who or what evolves and, finally, what is biodiversity and phylogenetics all about? Individuals related to each other by the tree of life. KW - biospecies KW - species as individuals KW - species as natural kinds KW - species concept KW - species problem Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-241052 SN - 2079-7737 VL - 10 IS - 6 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kouhestani, Dina A1 - Geis, Maria A1 - Alsouri, Saed A1 - Bumm, Thomas G. P. A1 - Einsele, Hermann A1 - Sauer, Markus A1 - Stuhler, Gernot T1 - Variant signaling topology at the cancer cell–T-cell interface induced by a two-component T-cell engager JF - Cellular & Molecular Immunology N2 - No abstract available. KW - immunotherapy KW - tumour immunology Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-241189 VL - 18 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Loos, Jacqueline A1 - Krauss, Jochen A1 - Lyons, Ashley A1 - Föst, Stephanie A1 - Ohlendorf, Constanze A1 - Racky, Severin A1 - Röder, Marina A1 - Hudel, Lennart A1 - Herfert, Volker A1 - Tscharntke, Teja T1 - Local and landscape responses of biodiversity in calcareous grasslands JF - Biodiversity and Conservation N2 - Across Europe, calcareous grasslands become increasingly fragmented and their quality deteriorates through abandonment and land use intensification, both affecting biodiversity. Here, we investigated local and landscape effects on diversity patterns of several taxonomic groups in a landscape of highly fragmented calcareous grassland remnants. We surveyed 31 grassland fragments near Göttingen, Germany, in spring and summer 2017 for vascular plants, butterflies and birds, with sampling effort adapted to fragment area. Through regression modelling, we tested relationships between species richness and fragment size (from 314 to 51,395 m\(^2\)), successional stage, habitat connectivity and the per cent cover of arable land in the landscape at several radii. We detected 283 plant species, 53 butterfly species and 70 bird species. Of these, 59 plant species, 19 butterfly species and 9 bird species were grassland specialists. Larger fragments supported twice the species richness of plants than small ones, and hosted more species of butterflies, but not of birds. Larger grassland fragments contained more grassland specialist plants, but not butterfly or bird specialists. Increasing amounts of arable land in the landscape from 20 to 90% was related to the loss of a third of species of plants, and less so, of butterflies, but not of birds. Per cent cover of arable land negatively correlated to richness of grassland specialist plants and butterflies, but positively to grassland specialist birds. We found no effect by successional stages and habitat connectivity. Our multi-taxa approach highlights the need for conservation management at the local scale, complemented by measures at the landscape scale. KW - abandonment KW - birds KW - butterflies KW - land use intensification KW - nature conservation KW - vascular plants Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-308595 SN - 0960-3115 SN - 1572-9710 VL - 30 IS - 8-9 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Riedmeier, Maria A1 - Decarolis, Boris A1 - Haubitz, Imme A1 - Müller, Sophie A1 - Uttinger, Konstantin A1 - Börner, Kevin A1 - Reibetanz, Joachim A1 - Wiegering, Armin A1 - Härtel, Christoph A1 - Schlegel, Paul-Gerhardt A1 - Fassnacht, Martin A1 - Wiegering, Verena T1 - Adrenocortical carcinoma in childhood: a systematic review JF - Cancers N2 - Adrenocortical tumors are rare in children. This systematic review summarizes the published evidence on pediatric adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) to provide a basis for a better understanding of the disease, investigate new molecular biomarkers and therapeutic targets, and define which patients may benefit from a more aggressive therapeutic approach. We included 137 studies with 3680 ACC patients (~65% female) in our analysis. We found no randomized controlled trials, so this review mainly reflects retrospective data. Due to a specific mutation in the TP53 gene in ~80% of Brazilian patients, that cohort was analyzed separately from series from other countries. Hormone analysis was described in 2569 of the 2874 patients (89%). Most patients were diagnosed with localized disease, whereas 23% had metastasis at primary diagnosis. Only 72% of the patients achieved complete resection. In 334 children (23%), recurrent disease was reported: 81% — local recurrence, 19% (n = 65) — distant metastases at relapse. Patients < 4 years old had a different distribution of tumor stages and hormone activity and better overall survival (p < 0.001). Although therapeutic approaches are typically multimodal, no consensus is available on effective standard treatments for advanced ACC. Thus, knowledge regarding pediatric ACC is still scarce and international prospective studies are needed to implement standardized clinical stratifications and risk-adapted therapeutic strategies. KW - pediatric adrenocortical cancer KW - pediatric adrenocortical adenoma KW - pediatric adrenocortical tumor KW - prognostic factors KW - therapy Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-248507 SN - 2072-6694 VL - 13 IS - 21 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ferreira, Eliana Aparecida A1 - Boff, Samuel A1 - Verza, Sandra S. A1 - Mussury, Rosilda Mara T1 - Bioecological and behavioral interaction between pollinating bees and the pioneer shrub Ludwigia nervosa in degraded area suggests an exotic bee as its major pollinator JF - Biology N2 - The flowers of plants of the genus Ludwigia are an important source of food for several species of bees. In the current study, we conducted an experiment with the aim to describe the reproductive biology and phenology of L. nervosa; to identify the species of visiting bees; analyze the foraging behavior of bees; and to investigate whether the reproductive success of the species is related to the foraging activity of bees. We found that the flowers received visits from several native bee species (n = 7), in addition of the exotic honey bees which came to be the dominant species. During visits the majority of the bees foraged in both resources, pollen and nectar. The significantly higher production of fruits in open pollinated pollination experiment compared to artificial cross pollination, suggests honey bees as effective pollinator of this plant species in the study site. Pollen deposition occurs efficiently, given the absence of pollen limitation. Despite massive visitation of honey bees, Ludwigianervosa is attractive to native bees, and therefore it may help to sustain population of both native and exotic pollinators in fragmented humid areas. KW - cross pollination KW - disturbed humid area KW - germination speed KW - honey bees and native bees KW - pollen limitation Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-228757 SN - 2079-7737 VL - 10 IS - 2 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Broster Reix, Christine E. A1 - Florimond, Célia A1 - Cayrel, Anne A1 - Mailhé, Amélie A1 - Agnero-Rigot, Corentin A1 - Landrein, Nicolas A1 - Dacheux, Denis A1 - Havlicek, Katharina A1 - Bonhivers, Mélanie A1 - Morriswood, Brooke A1 - Robinson, Derrick R. T1 - Bhalin, an essential cytoskeleton-associated protein of Trypanosoma brucei linking TbBILBO1 of the flagellar pocket collar with the hook complex JF - Microorganisms N2 - Background: In most trypanosomes, endo and exocytosis only occur at a unique organelle called the flagellar pocket (FP) and the flagellum exits the cell via the FP. Investigations of essential cytoskeleton-associated structures located at this site have revealed a number of essential proteins. The protein TbBILBO1 is located at the neck of the FP in a structure called the flagellar pocket collar (FPC) and is essential for biogenesis of the FPC and parasite survival. TbMORN1 is a protein that is present on a closely linked structure called the hook complex (HC) and is located anterior to and overlapping the collar. TbMORN1 is essential in the bloodstream form of T. brucei. We now describe the location and function of BHALIN, an essential, new FPC-HC protein. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here, we show that a newly characterised protein, BHALIN (BILBO1 Hook Associated LINker protein), is localised to both the FPC and HC and has a TbBILBO1 binding domain, which was confirmed in vitro. Knockdown of BHALIN by RNAi in the bloodstream form parasites led to cell death, indicating an essential role in cell viability. Conclusions/Significance: Our results demonstrate the essential role of a newly characterised hook complex protein, BHALIN, that influences flagellar pocket organisation and function in bloodstream form T. brucei parasites. KW - trypanosoma KW - flagellar pocket KW - hook complex KW - endocytosis KW - cytoskeleton KW - protozoan KW - flagellar pocket collar Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-250301 SN - 2076-2607 VL - 9 IS - 11 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Uphus, Lars A1 - Lüpke, Marvin A1 - Yuan, Ye A1 - Benjamin, Caryl A1 - Englmeier, Jana A1 - Fricke, Ute A1 - Ganuza, Cristina A1 - Schwindl, Michael A1 - Uhler, Johannes A1 - Menzel, Annette T1 - Climate effects on vertical forest phenology of Fagus sylvatica L., sensed by Sentinel-2, time lapse camera, and visual ground observations JF - Remote Sensing N2 - Contemporary climate change leads to earlier spring phenological events in Europe. In forests, in which overstory strongly regulates the microclimate beneath, it is not clear if further change equally shifts the timing of leaf unfolding for the over- and understory of main deciduous forest species, such as Fagus sylvatica L. (European beech). Furthermore, it is not known yet how this vertical phenological (mis)match — the phenological difference between overstory and understory — affects the remotely sensed satellite signal. To investigate this, we disentangled the start of season (SOS) of overstory F.sylvatica foliage from understory F. sylvatica foliage in forests, within nine quadrants of 5.8 × 5.8 km, stratified over a temperature gradient of 2.5 °C in Bavaria, southeast Germany, in the spring seasons of 2019 and 2020 using time lapse cameras and visual ground observations. We explained SOS dates and vertical phenological (mis)match by canopy temperature and compared these to Sentinel-2 derived SOS in response to canopy temperature. We found that overstory SOS advanced with higher mean April canopy temperature (visual ground observations: −2.86 days per °C; cameras: −2.57 days per °C). However, understory SOS was not significantly affected by canopy temperature. This led to an increase of vertical phenological mismatch with increased canopy temperature (visual ground observations: +3.90 days per °C; cameras: +2.52 days per °C). These results matched Sentinel-2-derived SOS responses, as pixels of higher canopy height advanced more by increased canopy temperature than pixels of lower canopy height. The results may indicate that, with further climate change, spring phenology of F. sylvatica overstory will advance more than F. sylvatica understory, leading to increased vertical phenological mismatch in temperate deciduous forests. This may have major ecological effects, but also methodological consequences for the field of remote sensing, as what the signal senses highly depends on the pixel mean canopy height and the vertical (mis)match. KW - overstory KW - understory KW - Sentinel-2 KW - time lapse cameras KW - vertical mismatch KW - phenological escape KW - climate change KW - European beech Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-248419 SN - 2072-4292 VL - 13 IS - 19 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Berberich, Andreas A1 - Kurz, Andreas A1 - Reinhard, Sebastian A1 - Paul, Torsten Johann A1 - Burd, Paul Ray A1 - Sauer, Markus A1 - Kollmannsberger, Philip T1 - Fourier Ring Correlation and anisotropic kernel density estimation improve deep learning based SMLM reconstruction of microtubules JF - Frontiers in Bioinformatics N2 - Single-molecule super-resolution microscopy (SMLM) techniques like dSTORM can reveal biological structures down to the nanometer scale. The achievable resolution is not only defined by the localization precision of individual fluorescent molecules, but also by their density, which becomes a limiting factor e.g., in expansion microscopy. Artificial deep neural networks can learn to reconstruct dense super-resolved structures such as microtubules from a sparse, noisy set of data points. This approach requires a robust method to assess the quality of a predicted density image and to quantitatively compare it to a ground truth image. Such a quality measure needs to be differentiable to be applied as loss function in deep learning. We developed a new trainable quality measure based on Fourier Ring Correlation (FRC) and used it to train deep neural networks to map a small number of sampling points to an underlying density. Smooth ground truth images of microtubules were generated from localization coordinates using an anisotropic Gaussian kernel density estimator. We show that the FRC criterion ideally complements the existing state-of-the-art multiscale structural similarity index, since both are interpretable and there is no trade-off between them during optimization. The TensorFlow implementation of our FRC metric can easily be integrated into existing deep learning workflows. KW - dSTORM KW - deep learning–artificial neural network (DL-ANN) KW - single molecule localization microscopy KW - microtubule cytoskeleton KW - super-resolution Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-261686 VL - 1 ER -