Rachel Jones

Coral diseases in aquaria and in nature

Many reef coral diseases have been described affecting corals in the wild, several of which have been associated with causal agents based on experimental inoculation and testing of Kochs postulates. In the aquarium industry, many coral diseases and pathologies are known from the grey literature but as yet these have not been systematically described and the relationship to known diseases in the wild is difficult to determine. There is therefore scope to aid the maintenance and husbandry of corals in aquaria by informing the field of the scientifically described wild diseases, if these can be reliably related. Conversely, since the main driver to identifying coral diseases in aquaria is to select an effective treatment, the lessons learnt by aquarists on which treatments work with particular syndromes provides invaluable evidence for determining the causal agents. Such treatments are not commonly sought by scientists working in the natural environment due the cost and potential environmental impacts of the treatments. Here we review both wild and aquarium diseases and attempt to relate the two. Many important aquarium diseases could not be reconciled to those in the wild. In one case, however, namely that of the ciliate Helicostoma sp. as a causal agent of brown jelly syndrome in aquarium corals, there may be similarities with pathogenic agents of the wild coral diseases, such as white syndrome and brown band syndrome. We propose that Helicostoma is actually a misnomer, but improved understanding of this pathogen and others could benefit both fields. Improved practices in aquarium maintenance and husbandry would also benefit natural environments by reducing the scale of wild harvest and improving the potential for coral culture, both for the aquarium industry and for rehabilitation programmes.

Partial fin-clipping as an effective tool for tissue sampling seahorses, Hippocampus spp.

Partial fin-clipping is a non-lethal sampling technique commonly used to sample tissue for molecular genetic studies of fish. The effect of this technique was tested on seahorses ( Hippocampus spp.) as they have several peculiar biological characteristics when compared with other fish and are on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . Partial fin-clipping of the seahorse dorsal fin was evaluated on Hippocampus kuda . The fish were assessed for short-term effects (fin re-growth time) as well as the longer term effects (growth and mortality) of partial fin clipping over a four month period. Total fin re-growth occurred between 2 and 4 weeks with no significant difference observed in the fin re-growth time between sexes. There was no significant difference between the mortality rate/growth rate of clipped versus unclipped seahorses. Results indicate partial fin-clipping has no significant effect on seahorses, and should be considered as a useful method for tissue sampling.

Population Group Abortion Rates and Lifetime Incidence of Abortion: United States, 2008–2014

Objectives To assess the prevalence of abortion among population groups and changes in rates between 2008 and 2014. Methods We used secondary data from the Abortion Patient Survey, the American Community Survey, and the National Survey of Family Growth to estimate abortion rates. We used information from the Abortion Patient Survey to estimate the lifetime incidence of abortion. Results Between 2008 and 2014, the abortion rate declined 25%, from 19.4 to 14.6 per 1000 women aged 15 to 44 years. The abortion rate for adolescents aged 15 to 19 years declined 46%, the largest of any group. Abortion rates declined for all racial and ethnic groups but were larger for non-White women than for non-Hispanic White women. Although the abortion rate decreased 26% for women with incomes less than 100% of the federal poverty level, this population had the highest abortion rate of all the groups examined: 36.6. If the 2014 age-specific abortion rates prevail, 24% of women aged 15 to 44 years in that year will have an abortion by age 45 years. Conclusions The decline in abortion was not uniform across all population groups.

The CORALZOO project: a synopsis of four years of public aquarium science

In order to improve the methodology for growing and maintaining corals in captivity, a consortium of European zoos, aquaria and academia executed a four-year public/private collaborative research and innovation project (CORALZOO) on the breeding and husbandry of stony corals. CORALZOO comprised the following topics: (1) sexual and asexual breeding of corals in captivity, including techniques for propagation, feeding and induction of natural coral colony morphogenesis; and (2) coral husbandry: development of generic bioassays to evaluate biotic and abiotic husbandry parameters and to monitor coral health, elaboration of methods for identification and treatment of coral diseases and optimization of transport and acclimation procedures. The results of this project are reviewed

Characteristics and Circumstances of U.S. Women Who Obtain Very Early and Second-Trimester Abortions.

Objective To determine which characteristics and circumstances were associated with very early and second-trimester abortion. Methods Paper and pencil surveys were collected from a national sample of 8,380 non-hospital U.S. abortion patients in 2014 and 2015. We used self-reported LMP to calculate weeks gestation; when LMP was not provided we used self-reported weeks pregnant. We constructed two dependent variables: obtaining a very early abortion, defined as six weeks gestation or earlier, and obtaining second-trimester abortion, defined as occurring at 13 weeks gestation or later. We examined associations between the two measures of gestation and a range of characteristics and circumstances, including type of abortion waiting period in the patients’ state of residence. Results Among first-trimester abortion patients, characteristics that decreased the likelihood of obtaining a very early abortion include being under the age of 20, relying on financial assistance to pay for the procedure, recent exposure to two or more disruptive events and living in a state that requires in-person counseling 24–72 hours prior to the procedure. Having a college degree and early recognition of pregnancy increased the likelihood of obtaining a very early abortion. Characteristics that increased the likelihood of obtaining a second-trimester abortion include being Black, having less than a high school degree, relying on financial assistance to pay for the procedure, living 25 or more miles from the facility and late recognition of pregnancy. Conclusions While the availability of financial assistance may allow women to obtain abortions they would otherwise be unable to have, it may also result in delays in accessing care. If poor women had health insurance that covered abortion services, these delays could be alleviated. Since the study period, four additional states have started requiring that women obtain in-person counseling prior to obtaining an abortion, and the increase in these laws could slow down the trend in very early abortion.

Coral Reefs of the Chagos Archipelago, Indian Ocean

Coral cover throughout the Chagos archipelago is high. Coral and soft coral mortality was very severe in 1998, along with most of the ocean, but there are no direct human impacts so that soft coral and coral cover is as high as it was before the massive mortality episode. There is a very low incidence of coral disease, and there are no recorded marine invasive species, a condition which is unprecedented in coral seas. The area contains between 25 and 50 % of the reefs in the Indian Ocean in very good condition, and the area has the largest contiguous area in the world of reefs in such a state. Reasons for the good condition of Chagos reefs are likely to include remoteness from compounding human activities, but also strongly light adapted ‘Clade A’ zooxanthellae may contribute: these occur in approximately half of the shallow water Acropora colonies which are now recovering strongly. Another contributing factor may be the regular incursions of deep, cool water that rise to cover reefs, including during annual periods of greatest warming. These reefs are viewed as a ‘baseline’ or reference point for many other coral rees in the Indian Ocean.

A novel investigation of a blister-like syndrome in aquarium echinopora lamellosa

This study investigates potential causes of a novel blister-like syndrome in the plating coral Echinopora lamellosa. Visual inspections of this novel coral syndrome showed no obvious signs of macroparasites and the blisters themselves manifested as fluid-filled sacs on the surface of the coral, which rose from the coenosarc between the coral polyps. Histological analysis of the blisters showed that there was no associated necrosis with the epidermal or gastrodermal tissues. The only difference between blistered areas and apparently healthy tissues was the presence of proliferated growth (possible mucosal cell hyperplasia) directly at the blister interface (area between where the edge of the blister joined apparently healthy tissue). No bacterial aggregates were identified in any histological samples, nor any sign of tissue necrosis identified. We conclude, that the blister formations are not apparently caused by a specific microbial infection, but instead may be the result of irritation following growth anomalies of the epidermis. However, future work should be conducted to search for other potential casual agents, including viruses.