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Marine protected areas (MPAs) are globally important environmental management tools that provide protection from the effects of human exploitation and activities, supporting the conservation of marine biological diversity, habitats, ecosystems and the processes they host, as well as resources in a broad sense. Consequently, they are also expected to manage and enhance marine ecosystem services and material, non-material, consumptive and non-consumptive goods, and benefits for humans. There is however certain confusion on what constitutes an ecosystem service, and it is not always easy to distinguish between them and societal benefits. The main nuance is that an ecosystem service is the aptitude an ecosystem has or develops naturally or as consequence of a management action, and that manifests through its own properties (productivity, diversity, stability, quality of its key parameters, etc.), while a societal benefit is the economic or other profitability (emotional, educational, scientific, etc.) that humans obtain from said service or quality. In this work, 268 publications, together with our own experiences in the different investigations carried out in the MPAs that are part of the BiodivERsA3-2015-21 RESERVEBENEFIT European project, have been selected, reviewed and discussed to analyze the knowledge status of the expected ecosystem services of MPAs and the societal benefits derived from them, sometimes providing information on their evidence, when they exist. We define and classify the effects of protection, ecosystem services and societal benefits and elaborate a conceptual model of the cause-effect relationships between them.

Desert truffles are edible hypogeous fungi forming ectendomycorrhizal symbiosis with plants of Cistaceae family. Knowledge about the reproductive modes of these fungi and the molecular mechanisms driving the ectendomycorrhizal interaction is lacking. Genomes of the highly appreciated edible desert truffles Terfezia claveryi Chatin and Tirmania nivea Trappe have been sequenced and compared with other Pezizomycetes. Transcriptomes of T. claveryi × Helianthemum almeriense mycorrhiza from well-watered and drought-stressed plants, when intracellular colonizations is promoted, were investigated. We have identified the fungal genes related to sexual reproduction in desert truffles and desert-truffles-specific genomic and secretomic features with respect to other Pezizomycetes, such as the expansion of a large set of gene families with unknown Pfam domains and a number of species or desert-truffle-specific small secreted proteins differentially regulated in symbiosis. A core set of plant genes, including carbohydrate, lipid-metabolism, and defence-related genes, differentially expressed in mycorrhiza under both conditions was found. Our results highlight the singularities of desert truffles with respect to other mycorrhizal fungi while providing a first glimpse on plant and fungal determinants involved in ecto to endo symbiotic switch that occurs in desert truffle under dry conditions.

The purpose of this work was to investigate, for the first time to our knowledge, the chemical composition and bioactivity of methanolic extracts (roots, stems, leaves, and flowers) from Cladanthus mixtus (L.) Chevall. that grows wild in northern Morocco (the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region). The phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined by spectrophotometer methods, and the composition of derivatized methanolic extracts from C. mixtus using N-O-bis(trimethylsilyl) trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) was analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The antioxidant activity was carried out by applying the 2,2′-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) and DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) tests. The micro-dilution technique was chosen to investigate the antimicrobial activity of methanolic extracts against two bacterial strains and three fungal species. The results showed that the values of total phenolic and flavonoid contents were found to be higher in flower extracts (30.55 ± 0.85 mg of gallic acid equivalents (GAE)/g of dried weight (DW) and 26.00 ±1.34 mg of quercetin equivalents (QE)/g DW, respectively). Other groups of chemical compounds were revealed by GC-MS, such as carbohydrates (27.25–64.87%), fatty acids (1.58–9.08%), organic acids (11.81–18.82%), and amino acids (1.26–7.10%). Root and flower methanolic extracts showed the highest antioxidant activity using ABTS (39.49 mg of Trolox equivalents (TE)/g DW) and DPPH (36.23 mg TE/g DW), respectively. A positive correlation between antioxidant activity and polyphenol and flavonoid amounts was found. Antibacterial tests showed that the best activity was presented by the leaf extract against Staphylococcus aureus (minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) = minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) = 20 mg/mL) and Escherichia coli (MIC of 30 mg/mL and MBC of 35 mg/mL). S. aureus was more sensitive to the extracts compared to E. coli. All extracts showed antifungal activity against Trichophyton rubrum, with the best efficacy reported by the flower and leaf extracts (MIC = 1.25 mg/mL and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) = 2.5 mg/mL). In general, extracts of C. mixtus appeared less effective against Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus.

Abstract Th17 is a lymphocyte T helper (Th) subpopulation relevant in the control and regulation of the immune response characterized by the production of interleukin (IL)-17. This crucial cytokine family acts through their binding to the IL-17 receptors (IL-17R), having up to six members. Although the biology of fish Th17 is well-recognized, the molecular and functional characterization of IL-17 and IL-17R has been limited. Thus, our aim was to identify and characterize the IL-17R repertory and regulation in the two main Mediterranean cultured fish species, the gilthead seabream ( Sparus aurata ) and the European sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ). Our in silico results showed the clear identification of six members in each fish species, from IL-17RA to IL-17RE-like, with well-conserved gene structure and protein domains with their human orthologues. All of them showed wide and constitutive transcription in naïve tissues but with highest levels in mucosal tissues, namely skin, gill or intestine. In leucocytes, T mitogens showed the strongest up-regulation in most of the il17 receptors though il17ra resulted in inhibition by most stimulants. Interestingly, in vivo nodavirus infection resulted in alterations on the transcription of il17 receptors . While nodavirus infection led to some increments in the il17ra , il17rb , il17rc and il17rd transcripts in the susceptible European sea bass, many down-regulations were observed in the resistant gilthead seabream. Our data identify the presence and conservation of six coding IL-17R in gilthead seabream and European sea bass as well as their differential regulation in vitro and upon nodavirus infection.

What environmental variables determine riparian vegetation patterns? Are there differences between woody and herbaceous species? To answer these questions, we first explored the composition and richness patterns of both riparian woody and herbaceous species in a semi-arid mediterranean basin. Then, we assessed the environmental factors (climate, geology, topography, hydrogeomorphology and land use) that best explain these patterns. We used the following methodological approaches: clustering analyses, distance-based linear models, generalised linear models and hierarchical partitioning procedures. Valley shape, drought duration, river habitat heterogeneity, water conductivity and agricultural land use were the most important variables explaining variation in species composition for both groups. Woody riparian richness was mainly influenced by flow conditions and valley shape, whereas herbaceous one was more dependent on substrate features. Thus, although some differences in the importance of individual variables were observed, we found a notable congruence in the composition and species richness of both groups and also in the main types of variables explaining these patterns (hydrogeomorphology and land use, especially agriculture). Our results show that both communities could be treated in a holistic way, since they respond similarly to the strong natural and anthropogenic environmental gradients present in mediterranean basins.

The differential responses of co-occurring species in rich communities to climate changeparticularly to drought episodeshave been fairly unexplored. Species distribution models (SDMs) are used to assess changes in species suitability under environmental shifts, but whether they can portray population and community responses is largely undetermined, especially in relation to extreme events. Here we studied a shrubland community in SE Spain because this region constitutes an ecotone between the Mediterranean biome and subtropical arid areas, and it has recently suffered its driest hydrological year on record. We used four different modeling algorithms (Mahalanobis distance, GAM, BRT, and MAXENT) to estimate species' climatic suitability before (1950-2000) and during the extreme drought. For each SDM, we related species' climatic suitability with their remaining green canopy as a proxy for species resistance to drought. We consistently found a positive correlation between remaining green canopy and species' climatic suitability before the event. This relationship supports the hypothesis of a higher vulnerability of populations living closer to their species' limits of aridity tolerance. Contrastingly, climatic suitability during the drought did not correlate with remaining green canopy, likely because the exceptional episode led to almost zero suitability values. Overall, our approach highlights climatic niche modeling as a robust approach to standardizing and comparing the behavior of different co-occurring species facing strong climatic fluctuations. Although many processes contribute to resistance to climatic extremes, the results confirm the relevance of populations' position in the species' climatic niche for explaining sensitivity to climate change.

The differential responses of co-occurring species in rich communities to climate changeparticularly to drought episodeshave been fairly unexplored. Species distribution models (SDMs) are used to assess changes in species suitability under environmental shifts, but whether they can portray population and community responses is largely undetermined, especially in relation to extreme events. Here we studied a shrubland community in SE Spain because this region constitutes an ecotone between the Mediterranean biome and subtropical arid areas, and it has recently suffered its driest hydrological year on record. We used four different modeling algorithms (Mahalanobis distance, GAM, BRT, and MAXENT) to estimate species' climatic suitability before (1950-2000) and during the extreme drought. For each SDM, we related species' climatic suitability with their remaining green canopy as a proxy for species resistance to drought. We consistently found a positive correlation between remaining green canopy and species' climatic suitability before the event. This relationship supports the hypothesis of a higher vulnerability of populations living closer to their species' limits of aridity tolerance. Contrastingly, climatic suitability during the drought did not correlate with remaining green canopy, likely because the exceptional episode led to almost zero suitability values. Overall, our approach highlights climatic niche modeling as a robust approach to standardizing and comparing the behavior of different co-occurring species facing strong climatic fluctuations. Although many processes contribute to resistance to climatic extremes, the results confirm the relevance of populations' position in the species' climatic niche for explaining sensitivity to climate change.

Although protein acetylation is widely observed, it has been associated with few specific regulatory functions making it poorly understood. To interrogate its functionality, we analyzed the acetylome in Escherichia coli knockout mutants of cobB, the only known sirtuin-like deacetylase, and patZ, the best-known protein acetyltransferase. For four growth conditions, more than 2,000 unique acetylated peptides, belonging to 809 proteins, were identified and differentially quantified. Nearly 65% of these proteins are related to metabolism. The global activity of CobB contributes to the deacetylation of a large number of substrates and has a major impact on physiology. Apart from the regulation of acetyl-CoA synthetase, we found that CobB-controlled acetylation of isocitrate lyase contributes to the fine-tuning of the glyoxylate shunt. Acetylation of the transcription factor RcsB prevents DNA binding, activating flagella biosynthesis and motility, and increases acid stress susceptibility. Surprisingly, deletion of patZ increased acetylation in acetate cultures, which suggests that it regulates the levels of acetylating agents. The results presented offer new insights into functional roles of protein acetylation in metabolic fitness and global cell regulation.

Background Bud dormancy is a crucial stage in perennial trees and allows survival over winter to ensure optimal flowering and fruit production. Recent work highlighted physiological and molecular events occurring during bud dormancy in trees. However, they usually examined bud development or bud dormancy in isolation. In this work, we aimed to further explore the global transcriptional changes happening throughout bud development and dormancy onset, progression and release. Results Using next-generation sequencing and modelling, we conducted an in-depth transcriptomic analysis for all stages of flower buds in several sweet cherry ( Prunus avium L.) cultivars that are characterized for their contrasted dates of dormancy release. We find that buds in organogenesis, paradormancy, endodormancy and ecodormancy stages are defined by the expression of genes involved in specific pathways, and these are conserved between different sweet cherry cultivars. In particular, we found that DORMANCY ASSOCIATED MADS-box ( DAM ), floral identity and organogenesis genes are up-regulated during the pre-dormancy stages while endodormancy is characterized by a complex array of signalling pathways, including cold response genes, ABA and oxidation-reduction processes. After dormancy release, genes associated with global cell activity, division and differentiation are activated during ecodormancy and growth resumption. We then went a step beyond the global transcriptomic analysis and we developed a model based on the transcriptional profiles of just seven genes to accurately predict the main bud dormancy stages. Conclusions Overall, this study has allowed us to better understand the transcriptional changes occurring throughout the different phases of flower bud development, from bud formation in the summer to flowering in the following spring. Our work sets the stage for the development of fast and cost effective diagnostic tools to molecularly define the dormancy stages. Such integrative approaches will therefore be extremely useful for a better comprehension of complex phenological processes in many species.

In the last decade, most of the evidence on the clinical benefits of including cruciferous foods in the diet has been focused on the content of glucosinolates (GSL) and their corresponding isothiocyanates (ITC), and mercapturic acid pathway metabolites, based on their capacity to modulate clinical, biochemical, and molecular parameters. The present systematic review summarizes findings of human studies regarding the metabolism and bioavailability of GSL and ITC, providing a comprehensive analysis that will help guide future research studies and facilitate the consultation of the latest advances in this booming and less profusely researched area of GSL for food and health. The literature search was carried out in Scopus, PubMed and the Web of Science, under the criteria of including publications centered on human subjects and the use of Brassicaceae foods in different formulations (including extracts, beverages, and tablets), as significant sources of bioactive compounds, in different types of subjects, and against certain diseases. Twenty-eight human intervention studies met inclusion criteria, which were classified into three groups depending on the dietary source. This review summarizes recent studies that provided interesting contributions, but also uncovered the many potential venues for future research on the benefits of consuming cruciferous foods in our health and well-being. The research will continue to support the inclusion of GSL-rich foods and products for multiple preventive and active programs in nutrition and well-being.