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The history of brown trout Salmo trutta L. stocking has long tradition in the European Union and other countries. Hundreds of hatchery facilities on continent have artificial broodstocks used for enhancement of neighbouring and also geographically far river basins. These practices have substantial effect on wild brown trout populations. To illuminate this phenomenon, eleven hatchery stocks and wild populations from northern Poland and Carpathian region were analysed using 13 microsatellite markers. Obtained results revealed high genetic diversity between studied stocks and clear differentiation between northern and southern populations and hybridization between these two major clads. As a recommendation, the principle of treating regions as metapopulations should be applied, which, in the case of Poland, means using the division of the northern and southern genetic lines that were revealed in the present study.

Livestock production systems are the result of an interaction between domestic animals and the environment, modulated by man, that dates back to Neolithic times. As a consequence of this interaction among the wide diversity of animal resources, natural habitats and population needs, very different farming systems have developed across the Mediterranean Basin. Understanding the mechanisms and effects of these relationships is key to design the farming systems best adapted to each condition, guaranteeing an adequate balance between target animal production and environmental outcomes provided by these systems. This is indeed a multidimensional topic, influenced by animal genetics, feeding resources, flock management, and economic and social aspects inside and outside the household. Therefore, this book focuses on the basis of the animal-environment interactions and the impact of human activities on the type and magnitude of these interactions. In this context, the issue of sustainability of livestock production is evaluated considering economic, social and environmental aspects. This book contributes to upgrade the state of the art in Mediterranean conditions, providing indicators and procedures of application across a wide range of systems, and hence of interest for researchers, students and professionals concerned with livestock production and the environment

Although the ancestral home of chelicerates was the sea, the vast majority of modern species live on land. Most students of spiders and mites also restrict themselves to terrestrial habitats. However, a surprising number of mites (Arachnida: Acari) have returned to a watery existence. Approximately 7000 species from the Mesostigmata, Astigmata, Oribatida, and especially the Prostigmata, now live in marine and freshwater habitats. In Aquatic Mites, a dozen chapters explore the distribution, ecology, behavior, genetics, and evolution of the most diverse of these astonishing arachnids. The results of these studies raise as many interesting questions as they answer, and should provoke more investigations of the biology of freshwater and marine Acari

This book offers a fresh perspective on the controversial topic of criminal and antisocial behavior. It synthesizes findings from behavioral and population genetics, evolutionary biology and criminology and presents the latest findings in twin studies, adoption cohort studies, molecular genetics and animal models for human aggression. Also included is a detailed analysis of the legal implications of genetics and crime research and strategies for rehabilitation

This book provides a summary of cutting-edge studies of the Lepidoptera as an organism in and of itself and as model systems. Leading researchers discuss symbiosis, genomes, sex determination, natural products, ecophysiology, sensory systems, pest control, the sterile insect technique, immunity, and evolution development. Understanding the biology and genetics of butterflies and moths may lead to new species-selective methods of control, saving billions of dollars in pesticide use and protecting environmental and human health, making the sections on pest control and the sterile insect technique very important.

International audience ; Livestock conservation practice is changing rapidly in light of policy developments, climate change and diversifying market demands. The last decade has seen a step change in technology and analytical approaches available to define, manage and conserve Farm Animal Genomic Resources (FAnGR). However, these rapid changes pose challenges for FAnGR conservation in terms of technological continuity, analytical capacity and integrative methodologies needed to fully exploit new, multidimensional data. The final conference of the ESF Genomic Resources program aimed to address these interdisciplinary problems in an attempt to contribute to the agenda for research and policy development directions during the coming decade. By 2020, according to the Convention on Biodiversity's Aichi Target 13, signatories should ensure that the genetic diversity of .farmed and domesticated animals and of wild relatives .is maintained, and strategies have been developed and implemented for minimizing genetic erosion and safeguarding their genetic diversity." However, the real extent of genetic erosion is very difficult to measure using current data Therefore, this challenging target demands better coverage, understanding and utilization of genomic and environmental data, the development of optimized ways to integrate these data with social and other sciences and policy analysis to enable more flexible, evidence based models to underpin FAnGR conservation. At the conference, we attempted to identify the most important problems for effective livestock genomic resource conservation during the next decade. Twenty priority questions were identified that could be broadly categorized into challenges related to methodology, analytical approaches, data management and conservation. It should be acknowledged here that while the focus of our meeting was predominantly around genetics, genomics and animal science, many of the practical challenges facing conservation of genomic resources are societal in origin and are predicated on the value (e.g., socio-economic and cultural) of these resources to farmers, rural communities and society as a whole. The overall conclusion is that despite the fact that the livestock sector has been relatively well-organized in the application of genetic methodologies to date, there is still a large gap between the current state-of-the-art in the use of tools to characterize genomic resources and its application to many non-commercial and local breeds, hampering the consistent utilization of genetic and genomic data as indicators of genetic erosion and diversity. The livestock genomic sector therefore needs to make a concerted effort in the coming decade to enable to the democratization of the powerful tools that are now at its disposal, and to ensure that they are applied in the context of breed conservation as well as development.

Pig production systems provide multiple benefits to humans. However, the global increase in meat consumption has profound consequences for our earth. This perspective describes two alternative scenarios for improving the sustainability of future pig production systems. The first scenario is a high input–high output system based on sustainable intensification, maximizing animal protein production efficiency on a limited land surface at the same time as minimizing environmental impacts. The second scenario is a reduced input–reduced output system based on selecting animals that are more robust to climate change and are better adapted to transform low quality feed (local feeds, feedstuff co‐products, food waste) into meat. However, in contrast to the first scenario, the latter scenario results in reduced predicted yields, reduced production efficiency and possibly increased costs to the consumer. National evaluation of the availability of local feed and feedstuff co‐product alternatives, determination of limits to feed sourced from international markets, available land for crop and livestock production, desired production levels, and a willingness to politically enforce policies through subsidies and/or penalties are some of the considerations to combine these two scenarios. Given future novel sustainable alternatives to livestock animal protein, it may become reasonable to move towards an added general premium price on 'protein from livestock animals' to the benefit of promoting higher incomes to farmers at the same time as covering the extra costs of, politically enforced, welfare of livestock animals in sustainable production systems.

(1) Introduction on different applications of molecular tools to answer novel questions in the field of population genetics/genomics of endangered mammals (Mike Bruford, School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, UK) -- (2) Climate change impact at the genetic level: patterns in the Couesi's rice rat Oryzomys couesi (Ella Vázquez Domínguez, Instituto de Ecología, UNAM, Mexico) -- (3) Use of molecular and demographic data to prioritize populations of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) from Chihuahua, Mexico for conservation (Luis Eguiarte Fruns, Instituto de Ecología, UNAM, Mexico) -- (4) Anthropogenic and Historic Movements of American Black Bears Shape Contemporary Population Structure (Emily Puckett, Division of Molecular Sciences, University of Missouri, USA) -- (5) How many ESUs are of conservation interest within some species of Neotropical carnivores (Felidae, Canidae, Ursidae, Mustelidae and Procyonidae)? : Individual mitocondrial genes versus mitogenomics (Manuel Ruiz García, Departamento de Biología, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Spain) -- (6) Phylogeographic footprint of armadillo colonization in North America (María Clara Arteaga, Departamento de Biología de la Conservación, Mexico) -- (7) Koala conservation in Queensland: a role for a living genome bank in genetic rescue? (Jenny Seddon, School of Veterinary Science, The University of Queensland, Australia) -- (8) Noninvasive genetics sheds light on the status, phylogeography, and evolution of the most elusive carnivores: The case of the snow leopard (Jan Janecka, Department of Biological Sciences, Duquesne University, USA) -- (9) Documenting genetic diversity in changing populations for management and conservation (Jennifer Leonard, Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics, Estación Biológica de Doñana, Spain) -- (10) Conservation genetic of gray brocket deer (Mazama gouazoubira) in the southern of the distribution range (Susana González, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Genética, Universidad de Uruguay) -- (11) Noninvasive Genetic Monitoring of the Elusive European Wildcat as a Tool for Science-Based Wildlife Conservation (Katharina Steyer, Seckenberg Research Institute, Germany) -- (12) Conservation genetics in bats: current progress and future prospects (Serena Dool, University of Greifswald, Germany) -- (13) From dung to demography: Using noninvasive methods to study elephants inside and outside protected areas (Lori Eggert, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, USA) -- (14) Effect of the habitat connectivity in the genetic variability of the Volcano rabbit (Romerolagus diazi) (Jorge Ortega/Leslie Montes/José Antonio Guerrero, Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto Politécnico Nacional) -- (15) Different immune system diversity for city life: comparing major histocompatiblity complex alleles in San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) (Jesus Maldonado/Tammy R Wilbert, Masoumeh Sikaroodi, Brian Cypher, Christine Van Horn Job, Katherine Ralls, and Patrick M. Gillevet, Center for Conservation Genomics, Smithsonian Institue, Washington, DC, USA) -- (16) Conclusion: current state and future prospects of conservation genomics in mammals (Jorge Ortega, Jesus Maldonado).

Animal welfare and the meat market -- Animal welfare in developing countries -- Genetics and animal welfare -- Cattle -- Sheep -- Pigs -- Poultry and rabbits -- Aquaculture -- Other species -- Livestock presentation and welfare before slaughter -- Stunning and slaughter -- Meat quality -- Implementing effective animal welfare auditing programs / by Temple Gandin -- The future -- References -- Student assignments -- Index

Habitat fragmentation is one of the most ubiquitous and serious environmental threats confronting the long-term survival of plant and animal species worldwide. As species become restricted to remnant habitats, effective management for long-term conservation requires a quantitative understanding of the genetic and demographic effects of habitat fragmentation, and the implications for population viability. This book provides a detailed introduction to the genetic and demographic issues relevant to the conservation of fragmented populations such as demographic stochasticity; genetic erosion; inbreeding; metapopulation biology and population viability analysis. Also presented are two sets of case studies, one on animals, the other on plants, which illustrate a variety of approaches, including the application of molecular genetic markers, the investigation of reproductive biology, and the combination of demographic monitoring and modeling, to examine long-term population viability

AbstractOptogenetics is the constellation of optics, genetics and bioengineering which unites genetic engineering with optics to notice and manage the function of genetically targeted groups of cells with light, often in the intact animal, via light-sensitive microbial membrane proteins (opsins). Light-sensitive genes specifically including the genetically targeted light-gated channels channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) and halorhodopsin (NpHR) result in intracellular ion flow during optical illumination. Afterward, the neurons encounter a series of changes resulting from membrane depolarization or hyperpolarization. Although the rooted origins of optogenetics is from neuroscience, it can be potentially applied in neuropsychocardioncology (neurology, psychiatry, oncology, and cardiology).This critical review will explicate a comprehensive summary of the roles of optogenetics in the field of neuropsychocardioncology.Optogenetics can be potentially developed as neuroprosthetics and direct NpHR in the management of spastic movement disorders. Optogenetics can control of larynx muscle contraction in vivo, using both transgenic ChR2 expressing mice and viral transduction of muscle.In epilepsy, the efficacy of optogenetics is proved. Pyramidal cells in the cortex were transduced with halorhodopsin, and photoinhibition of the neurons decreased electrical seizure activity. Optogenetic and DREADD technologies are in their early stages, particularly with respect to PD research or therapy.In autism and schizophrenia, behavioral deficits may arise from elevation in the cellular balance of excitation/inhibition (E/I balance) within neuronal microcircuits. This hypothesis was tested by optogenetically elevating the E/I balance in the medial-prefrontal cortex using a step-function opsin (SSFO), together with red-shifted opsins (C1V1). Increased excitation in excitatory pyramidal neurons, lead to social-cognitive dysfunctioning which are similar to those seen in autism. Cortical gamma oscillations are an indicator of enhanced information processing, which is highly affected in schizophrenic patients.Using optogenetic technology, researchers divulge the characterization of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) in Rac1-dependent lamellipodial motility in PC-3 prostate cancer cells. PI3K, acting downstream of Rac1, has an important role in the initiation of lamellipodial extension, which underlies prostate cancer cell invasion and metastasis. As in Parkinson, human cells can be engineered to deliver the excitatory (hM3Dq receptor) and/or the inhibitory (hM4Di receptor) form so that cellular activity may be turned up or down.The optogenetic TCU (tandem-cell-unit) strategy can be valuable in appraising tissue graft integration and cell delivery in the myocardium during cardiac tissue repair procedures. Low-energy pacing strategies can be srutinized by optogenetic investigations. Specifically, optical stimulation can be aimed for strategic structures of the conduction system. Optogenetic studies have already contributed to a better understanding of the neural circuits affected in many disorders. A conceptual and mutual understanding of multidisciplinary approaches and collaboration will enable researchers, clinicians, stakeholders, government develop and apply optogenetics in comprehensive medical services and health care.Keywords: optogenetics, opsins, neuropsychocardioncology, SSFO, DREADD, TCU.