Repositório RCAAP
As expectativas dos jovens em relação ao acompanhamento psicológico
As expectativas têm sido consideradas um factor que se pensa influenciar o processo e os resultados psicoterapêuticos e podem ser definidas como crenças antecipatórias que os pacientes trazem consigo para o acompanhamento psicológico. As expectativas podem englobar crenças relativas aos procedimentos, resultados, terapeutas e outros aspectos do processo terapêutico e surgem relacionadas com a eficiência que o cliente espera (expectativas de resultado) e com os comportamentos esperados existir numa situação de acompanhamento psicológico (expectativas de papel). O presente estudo procura avaliar as expectativas dos jovens relativamente ao acompanhamento psicológico, comparando as opiniões de jovens expostos ao trabalho do psicólogo em contexto escolar com jovens cuja escola não tem Serviço de Psicologia e Orientação. Pretende-se avaliar se o facto do psicólogo se encontrar inserido no ambiente escolar proporciona alguma familiarização dos jovens com o papel e prática da Psicologia. Neste estudo participaram 31 jovens, com idades compreendidas entre os 12 e os 13 anos de idade, divididos em dois grupos. Em termos metodológicos, optou-se por recorrer a uma metodologia qualitativa, tendo sido aplicado um questionário de resposta aberta, adaptado da entrevista semi-estruturada de Surf e Lycnh (1999). Para analisar os dados recolhidos, recorreu-se à análise de conteúdo que permitiu concluir que as opiniões dos jovens apresentam pequenas diferenças. Embora a análise dos dados tenha verificado que, na sua maioria, os jovens revelam uma opinião positiva em relação ao acompanhamento psicológico, os jovens da escola com SPO apresentaram uma tendência para expressar expectativas mais adequadas relativamente ao papel do psicólogo e ao próprio processo terapêutico. Estes dados sugerem que a presença ou ausência do psicólogo em meio escolar pode contribuir para o conhecimento e familiarização dos jovens com a Psicologia.
Fansubbing e legendagem profissional: um estudo comparativo da tradução inglês-português de referências culturais na série Family Guy
Esta dissertação foi elaborada no âmbito do Mestrado em Tradução e tem como objetivo descrever a tradução para legendagem de referências culturais como problema de tradução. Reconhecendo que a tradução consiste também em aspetos socioculturais considerados como obstáculos na tradução, propôs-se aqui explorar esta temática na modalidade do fansubbing. Nesta vertente, procedeu-se à análise comparativa das estratégias de tradução para legendagem de referências culturais no fansubbing e na tradução para legendagem profissional. De forma a desenvolver-se uma análise bem fundamentada, foi estabelecido um enquadramento teórico focado na revisão dos conceitos a analisar de tradução profissional, fansubbing e referências culturais. A discussão teórica baseada em Díaz Cintas & Muñoz Sánchez (2006), Díaz Cintas & Remael (2007), Dwyer (2012), e Pedersen (2011; 2016), mais precisamente no contexto português, Pais (2015) e Rocha (2012), permitirá conceber um instrumento de contextualização do presente estudo. Parar responder à pergunta de investigação elaborou-se um corpus paralelo bilingue (inglês-português europeu), com base na observação dos dados no corpus não translato e translato. O corpus de partida e de chegada consistiu na temporada 13 da série norte-americana Family Guy devido à elevada frequência de referências culturais na mesma. Com base nesta metodologia foi possível apurar que a estratégia mais utilizada pelo fansubber e tradutor profissional foi a retenção. Todavia, as conclusões deste estudo são fundamentais para reconhecer a influência do conhecimento da CC, do público-alvo e dos condicionalismos da legendagem na frequência das estratégias de tradução para legendagem. Em suma, este estudo tem como intuito a busca de resultados que possam auxiliar investigações futuras sobre a Tradução Audiovisual, mais concretamente o fansubbing, e a tradução de referências culturais para legendagem, de forma a moldar o fansubbing como prática de tradução, bem como a descrição de uma manifestação de fãs que interagem em comunidades online.
2025-10-28T12:10:34Z
Silva, Vanessa Filipa Fernandes da
Psychopathic traits and reinforcement learning under acute stress
Objective: Individuals with high levels of psychopathic traits are often characterized by aberrant reinforcement learning. This type of learning, which implicates making choices that maximize rewards and minimize punishments, may be affected by acute stress. However, how acute stress affects reinforcement learning in individuals with different levels of psychopathic traits is not well-understood. Here, we investigated whether and how individual differences in psychopathic traits modulated the impact of acute stress on reward and punishment learning. Method: Sixty-two male participants from a university sample completed the Self-Report Psychopathy-Short Form scale and performed a reinforcement-learning task involving monetary gains and losses whilst under acute stress and control conditions. Results: Individual differences in psychopathic traits modulated the impact of acute stress on behavioral performance toward obtaining gains, but not toward avoiding losses. As levels of psychopathic traits increased, the impairing effect of acute stress on reward learning decreased. Specifically, acute stress impaired performance toward seeking gains to a larger extent in individuals with lower levels of psychopathic traits than in individuals with higher levels of these traits. Conclusions: Our study indicates that psychopathic traits modulate the impact of acute stress on reward learning.
2025-10-28T12:21:41Z
Carvalheiro, Joana Conceição, Vasco A. Mesquita, Ana Seara‐Cardoso, Ana
Neuronal dynamics and miRNA signaling differ between SH-SY5Y APPSwe and PSEN1 Mutant iPSC-Derived AD models upon modulation with miR-124 Mimic and Inhibitor
Neuronal miRNA dysregulation may have a role in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). miRNA(miR)-124 is largely abundant and a critical player in many neuronal functions. However, the lack of models reliably recapitulating AD pathophysiology hampers our understanding of miR-124’s role in the disease. Using the classical human SH-SY5Y-APP695 Swedish neuroblastoma cells (SH-SWE) and the PSEN1 mutant iPSC-derived neurons (iNEU-PSEN), we observed a sustained upregulation of miR-124/miR-125b/miR-21, but only miR-124 was consistently shuttled into their exosomes. The miR-124 mimic reduced APP gene expression in both AD models. While miR-124 mimic in SH-SWE neurons led to neurite outgrowth, mitochondria activation and small Aβ oligomer reduction, in iNEU-PSEN cells it diminished Tau phosphorylation, whereas miR-124 inhibitor decreased dendritic spine density. In exosomes, cellular transfection with the mimic predominantly downregulated miR-125b/miR-21/miR-146a/miR-155. The miR-124 inhibitor upregulated miR-146a in the two experimental cell models, while it led to distinct miRNA signatures in cells and exosomes. In sum, though miR-124 function may be dependent on the neuronal AD model, data indicate that keeping miR-124 level strictly controlled is crucial for proper neuronal function. Moreover, the iNEU-PSEN cellular model stands out as a useful tool for AD mechanistic studies and perhaps for the development of personalized therapeutic strategies.
2025-10-28T12:28:46Z
Garcia, Gonçalo Pinto, Sara Cunha, Mar Fernandes, Adelaide Koistinaho, Jari Brites, Dora
Pathophysiology of aniridia-associated keratopathy: developmental aspects and unanswered questions
Aniridia, a rare congenital disease, is often characterized by a progressive, pronounced limbal insufficiency and ocular surface pathology termed aniridia-associated keratopathy (AAK). Due to the characteristics of AAK and its bilateral nature, clinical management is challenging and complicated by the multiple coexisting ocular and systemic morbidities in aniridia. Although it is primarily assumed that AAK originates from a congenital limbal stem cell deficiency, in recent years AAK and its pathogenesis has been questioned in the light of new evidence and a refined understanding of ocular development and the biology of limbal stem cells (LSCs) and their niche. Here, by consolidating and comparing the latest clinical and preclinical evidence, we discuss key unanswered questions regarding ocular developmental aspects crucial to AAK. We also highlight hypotheses on the potential role of LSCs and the ocular surface microenvironment in AAK. The insights thus gained lead to a greater appreciation for the role of developmental and cellular processes in the emergence of AAK. They also highlight areas for future research to enable a deeper understanding of aniridia, and thereby the potential to develop new treatments for this rare but blinding ocular surface disease.
2025-10-28T12:24:20Z
Latta, L. Figueiredo, F. C. Ashery-Padan, R. Collinson, J. M. Daniels, J. Ferrari, S. Szentmáry, N. Solá, Susana Shalom-Feuerstein, R. Lako, M. Xapelli, Sara Aberdam, D. Lagali, N.
Acute HIV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 infections Share Slan+ Monocyte Depletion - evidence from an hyperacute HIV-1 case report
Monocytes are key modulators in acute viral infections, determining both inflammation and development of specific B- and T-cell responses. Recently, these cells were shown to be associated to different SARS-CoV-2 infection outcome. However, their role in acute HIV-1 infection remains unclear. We had the opportunity to evaluate the mononuclear cell compartment in an early hyper-acute HIV-1 patient in comparison with an untreated chronic HIV-1 and a cohort of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients, by high dimensional flow cytometry using an unsupervised approach. A distinct polarization of the monocyte phenotype was observed in the two viral infections, with maintenance of pro-inflammatory M1-like profile in HIV-1, in contrast to the M2-like immunosuppressive shift in SARS-CoV-2. Noticeably, both acute infections had reduced CD14low/-CD16+ non-classical monocytes, with depletion of the population expressing Slan (6-sulfo LacNac), which is thought to contribute to immune surveillance through pro-inflammatory properties. This depletion indicates a potential role of these cells in acute viral infection, which has not previously been explored. The inflammatory state accompanied by the depletion of Slan+ monocytes may provide new insights on the critical events that determine the rate of viral set-point in acute HIV-1 infection and subsequent impact on transmission and reservoir establishment.
2025-10-28T12:27:00Z
Farias, Guilherme B. Badura, Robert Conceição, Carolina M. Gomes, André Godinho-Santos, Ana Laia, Joel Rosmaninho, Pedro Santos, Diana Mota, Catarina Almeida, Afonso Fernandes, Susana M. Trombetta, Amelia Chiara Sousa, Ana E.
Bringing macrophages to the frontline against cancer: current Immunotherapies targeting macrophages
Macrophages are found in all tissues and display outstanding functional diversity. From embryo to birth and throughout adult life, they play critical roles in development, homeostasis, tissue repair, immunity, and, importantly, in the control of cancer growth. In this review, we will briefly detail the multi-functional, protumoral, and antitumoral roles of macrophages in the tumor microenvironment. Our objective is to focus on the ever-growing therapeutic opportunities, with promising preclinical and clinical results developed in recent years, to modulate the contribution of macrophages in oncologic diseases. While the majority of cancer immunotherapies target T cells, we believe that macrophages have a promising therapeutic potential as tumoricidal effectors and in mobilizing their surroundings towards antitumor immunity to efficiently limit cancer progression.
2025-10-28T12:18:55Z
Reis-Sobreiro, Mariana Teixeira da Mota, Afonso Jardim, Carolina Serre, Karine
Analysis of clinical and methodological characteristics of early COVID-19 treatment clinical trials: so much work, so many lost opportunities
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage on, and clinical research has been promoted worldwide. We aimed to assess the clinical and methodological characteristics of treatment clinical trials that have been set forth as an early response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: First, we reviewed all registered clinical trials on COVID-19. The World Health Organization International Trials Registry Platform and national trial registries were searched for COVID-19 trials through April 19th, 2020. For each record, independent researchers extracted interventions, participants, and methodological characteristics. Second, on September 14th, 2020 we evaluated the recruitment status and availability of the results of COVID-19 treatment trials previously identified. Results: In April 2020, a total of 580 trials evaluating COVID-19 treatment were registered. Reporting quality was poor (core participant information was missing in 24.1 to 92.7%). Between 54.0 and 93.8% of the trials did not plan to include older people or those with a higher baseline risk. Most studies were randomised (67.9%), single-centre (58.3%), non-industry-funded (81.1%), to be conducted in China (47.6%), with a median duration of 184 days and a median sample size of 100 participants. Core endpoints (mortality, clinical status, and hospitalization length) were planned to be assessed in 5.2 to 13.1% of the trials. Five months later, 66 trials (11.4%) were reported as "Completed", and only 46 (7.9%) had public results available. One hundred forty-four of 580 trials (24.8%) either had the status "Not yet recruiting" or "Suspended", and 18 (3.1%) trials were prematurely stopped ("Terminated" or "Withdrawn") The number of completed trials and trials with results are much lower than anticipated, considering the planned follow-up. Conclusions: Our results raise concerns about the success of the initial global research effort on COVID-19 treatment. The clinical and methodological characteristics of early COVID-19 treatment trials limit their capability to produce clear answers to critical questions in the shortest possible time.
2025-10-28T12:22:08Z
Mainoli, Beatrice Machado, Tiago Duarte, Gonçalo Silva Prada, Luísa Gonçalves, Nilza Ferreira, Joaquim J Costa, João
Dissection of the pre-germinal center B-cell maturation pathway in common variable immunodeficiency based on standardized flow cytometric EuroFlow tools
Introduction: Common Variable Immunodeficiency (CVID) is characterized by defective antibody production and hypogammaglobulinemia. Flow cytometry immunophenotyping of blood lymphocytes has become of great relevance for the diagnosis and classification of CVID, due to an impaired differentiation of mature post-germinal-center (GC) class-switched memory B-cells (MBC) and severely decreased plasmablast/plasma cell (Pb) counts. Here, we investigated in detail the pre-GC B-cell maturation compartment in blood of CVID patients. Methods: In this collaborative multicentric study the EuroFlow PID 8-color Pre-GC B-cell tube, standardized sample preparation procedures (SOPs) and innovative data analysis tools, were used to characterize the maturation profile of pre-GC B-cells in 100 CVID patients, vs 62 age-matched healthy donors (HD). Results: The Pre-GC B-cell tube allowed identification within pre-GC B-cells of three subsets of maturation associated immature B-cells and three subpopulations of mature naïve B-lymphocytes. CVID patients showed overall reduced median absolute counts (vs HD) of the two more advanced stages of maturation of both CD5+ CD38+/++ CD21het CD24++ (2.7 vs 5.6 cells/µl, p=0.0004) and CD5+ CD38het CD21+ CD24+ (6.5 vs 17 cells/µl, p<0.0001) immature B cells (below normal HD levels in 22% and 37% of CVID patients). This was associated with an expansion of CD21-CD24- (6.1 vs 0.74 cells/µl, p<0.0001) and CD21-CD24++ (1.8 vs 0.4 cells/µl, p<0.0001) naïve B-cell counts above normal values in 73% and 94% cases, respectively. Additionally, reduced IgMD+ (21 vs 32 cells/µl, p=0.03) and IgMD- (4 vs 35 cells/µl, p<0.0001) MBC counts were found to be below normal values in 25% and 77% of CVID patients, respectively, always together with severely reduced/undetectable circulating blood pb. Comparison of the maturation pathway profile of pre-GC B cells in blood of CVID patients vs HD using EuroFlow software tools showed systematically altered patterns in CVID. These consisted of: i) a normally-appearing maturation pathway with altered levels of expression of >1 (CD38, CD5, CD19, CD21, CD24, and/or smIgM) phenotypic marker (57/88 patients; 65%) for a total of 3 distinct CVID patient profiles (group 1: 42/88 patients, 48%; group 2: 8/88, 9%; and group 3: 7/88, 8%) and ii) CVID patients with a clearly altered pre-GC B cell maturation pathway in blood (group 4: 31/88 cases, 35%). Conclusion: Our results show that maturation of pre-GC B-cells in blood of CVID is systematically altered with up to four distinctly altered maturation profiles. Further studies, are necessary to better understand the impact of such alterations on the post-GC defects and the clinical heterogeneity of CVID.
2025-10-28T12:11:30Z
del Pino-Molina, Lucía López-Granados, Eduardo Lecrevisse, Quentin Torres Canizales, Juan Pérez-Andrés, Martín Blanco, Elena Wentink, Marjolein Bonroy, Carolien Nechvatalova, Jana Milota, Tomas Kienzler, Anne-Kathrin Philippé, Jan Sousa, Ana E. van der Burg, Mirjam Kalina, Tomas van Dongen, Jacques J.M. Orfao, Alberto
Cardiovascular comorbidities in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Background: The role of cardiovascular risk factors in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is controversial. A favourable profile has been found in ALS patients, but previous studies have not specifically considered the profile in different disease phenotypes. Methods: Demographic data, smoking habits, lifetime exercise, and medical history including diabetes mellitus, arterial hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, stroke, and cardiac events, were analysed in ALS patients and in controls with other neurological disorders, utilising a standardized questionnaire applied by the same neurologist. In ALS patients the results were analysed according to their different phenotypes. Univariate analyses and multinomial logistic models were applied to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and confidence intervals (CIs) for covariates, to test potential modifiers and their effects. Results: 500 consecutively assessed adult ALS patients (mean age 65.6, 47% women, and 136 bulbar-onset) and 327 age and gender-matched controls were studied. Patients with spinal-onset ALS took more exercise (p = 0.012), reported less hypertension (p = 0.002) and had fewer cardiac events (p = 0.012). Multinomial regression analysis showed that men without hypertension have a higher risk of having spinal-onset ALS (p < 0.001) while female with hypertension have a higher risk of having bulbar-onset ALS (p = 0.033). Conclusions: Risk-factors in ALS can be influenced by gender and phenotype. This study suggests that men with spinal ALS are healthier, exercise more and have lower rate of hypertension, but females with bulbar-onset ALS are more prone to hypertension. The complex interplay between exercise, diet and comorbidities with ALS phenotype requires further investigation.
2025-10-28T12:20:21Z
Pereira, Mariana Gromicho, Marta Henriques, Ana Pronto Laborinho, Ana Catarina Grosskreutz, Julian Kuźma-Kozakiewicz, Magdalena Petri, Susanne Uysal, Hilmi Swash, Michael Carvalho, Mamede
Cerebral venous thrombosis: what's new?
Thrombosis of the cerebral veins and sinuses (CVT) is a distinct cerebrovascular disorder that, unlike arterial stroke, most often affects children and young adults, especially women. In this review, we will summarize recent advances on the knowledge of patients with CVT.
Soluble CD40 ligand expression in stable atherosclerosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Background and aims: The role of inflammation in atherosclerosis development and expression in different arterial territories is unclear. Soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L) mediates inflammation and atherogenesis. Through a systematic review and meta-analysis, we assessed whether sCD40L was dysregulated in stable atherosclerosis, irrespective of the diseased arterial territory, and whether this dysregulation differed according to the specific territory. Methods: Systematic literature searches were performed in MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase for studies reporting circulating sCD40L levels in individuals with and without stable atherosclerosis. sCD40L levels were compared using random-effects meta-analysis, weighted by the inverse variance method (study protocol: PROSPERO CRD42020181392). Results: Fifty-four studies (59 estimates) including 7705 patients and 7841 controls were analyzed. sCD40L levels were found to be increased in patients with atherosclerosis, irrespective of the territory (standardized mean difference [SMD] 0.43, 95% CI 0.29-0.57; 59 estimates; χ2 heterogeneity p < 0.001; I2 = 92%). SMD was greatest in carotid atherosclerosis (SMD 0.58, 95% CI 0.30-0.86; 17 estimates), followed by coronary (SMD 0.43, 95% CI 0.24-0.62; 33 estimates), lower extremity (SMD 0.26, 95% CI -0.02-0.54; 7 estimates), and renal atherosclerosis (SMD -0.07, 95% CI -2.77-2.64; 2 estimates) (χ2 heterogeneity p < 0.001; I2 ≥ 80% for all). Subgroup analysis revealed that sCD40L levels were increased in clinical, but not subclinical, atherosclerosis. Conclusions: sCD40L levels were increased in stable atherosclerosis, particularly in the carotid and coronary territories. These novel data support sCD40L as a marker of systemic atherosclerosis, possibly with differential roles in specific territories.
2025-10-28T12:08:55Z
Pereira-da-Silva, Tiago Ferreira, Vera Castelo, Alexandra Caldeira, Daniel Napoleão, Patricia Pinheiro, Teresa Ferreira, Rui Cruz Carmo, Miguel Mota
Gama, nº14 (Jul./Dez. 2019)
A revista Gama parece agir como um revelador de imagens latentes: a sua ação é uma ativação social, sempre de reforço simbólico, que permite auxiliar a discernir, e a identificar, aquilo a que todos chamamos de arte. É um projeto de legitimação apoiado nos criadores: que sejam os artistas a apontar os caminhos da arte, onde eles se escondem, onde ela pode passar a ser. Como em Espinosa, na ‘Ética,’ a arte pode ser uma ‘qualia’ de uma substância potente, que ao ser percebida e reconhecida, nas páginas do número 14 da revista Gama, nos seus 16 artigos, se percebe como coisa, ocorrência valiosa, ou melhor, ‘valente.’
2025-10-28T12:26:21Z
Queiroz, João Ferrão, Hugo Rodrigues, Luís Assis, Ana Cláudia Souza, Beatriz Adeodato Alves de Paz Mardones, Fernando David Conceição, Alexandra Castro Weymar, Lúcia Bergamaschi Costa Dias, Giulia Solera Almozara, Paula Gonçalves, Sandra M. Lúcia Pereira Charréu, L. Sapede, Fábio Souza, Marcela Antunes de Pacheco, Rui Manuel Malveiro PEREIRA, CLAUDIA Nogaledo Gómez, Laura Barachini, Teresinha
Gama, nº13 (Jan./Jun. 2019)
Entre Lisboa e a América, encontra-se o pretexto para o conhecimento mútuo, para descobrir autores e artistas: a viagem torna-nos diferentes. A revista GAMA galga os muros e procura o reconhecimanto. O resultado, um acervo de informação sobre a arte de cá e de lá do Atlântico, de ontem, ou de há pouco. A revista GAMA não ficou no Quintal: saltou muros, brincou com os novos vizinhos, esfolou os joelhos, roubou laranjas. O resultado, uma aventura de conhecimento. A liberdade está na possibilidade da viagem e do conhecimento. Tenho que saber quem sou, tenho de saber quem és.
2025-10-28T12:26:34Z
Queiroz, João Salvatori, Maristela Pinheiro, Luisa Esteves, Leandro Sales Paros, Felipe Martins Mallent, Marta Marco Vicente, Sérgio Fortes, Arlinda Maria Eugénio Gutlich, George Rembrandt Paixão, Rajaa Bonani, André Amarante Almozara, Paula Sabino, Isabel Lima, Cláudia Barreto, Susana Rizolli Moreira, Hugo Daniel Pohlmann, Angela Raffin Brasil, José Umbelino Stori, Norberto Maranhão, Romero de A. Marques, Ines Andrade
The spectacle of painting : personal development within painting and the belonging aspects
Esta dissertação é sobre a experiência da pintura (a experiência de pintar) na era da pós-internet e estrutura-se nos resultados de pesquisas das sociedades educadas ocidentais. Como é que o acesso efetivo às tecnologias da informação afeta o trabalho artístico e criativo? Como é que interfere nas escolhas de cada indivíduo e no seu desenvolvimento artístico? E porque é que o processo de crescimento e de independência é tão importante para o auto-conhecimento (pessoal e artístico)? Para responder a estas perguntas e aos assuntos que lhes são inerentes é necessário contextualizar sobre qual foi a minha área de interesse pessoal nos últimos dois anos, que passei em Portugal. Portanto, minhas experiências pessoais e as respectivas pesquisas plásticas, teóricas e conceptuais sobre os vários temas que me interessam fundem-se e vêm sublinhar a investigação pela pintura como um campo de questionamento criativo e artístico. Para salientar o aspecto pessoal, tomo a liberdade de falar na primeira pessoa ao longo de todo o documento. A investigação que se segue está ligada a uma série de pinturas que vão ser expostas na Faculdade de Belas-Artes de Lisboa entre 8 e 18 de Junho de 2021. A selecção desta série de oito pinturas é especial porque mostra o resultado do meu desenvolvimento artístico durante os últimos 2 anos, em Lisboa; reflecte os meus interesses, o desenvolvimento técnico pictórico e a minha forte ligação à pintura figurativa nos dias de hoje. Um dos meus objectivos nesta investigação foi pensar sobre a pintura que desenvolvo e que vou apresentar. Neste sentido, apresento o leque de informações que é inerente ao meu projecto pictórico, primeiro, para documentar e reforçar as motivações pessoais que o originaram e, depois, para ajudar o leitor ou observador identificar-me como o autor destas pinturas, especificamente, e neste movimento compreender quais os temas e conceitos que me interessam.
Habitat filtering and inferred dispersal ability condition across‐scale species turnover and rarity in Macaronesian island spider assemblages
Aim Habitat diversity has been linked to the diversity and structure of island communities, however, little is known about patterns and processes within habitats. Here we aim to determine the contributions of habitat type and inferred dispersal frequency to the differences in taxonomic structure between assemblages in the same island habitat. Location The Macaronesian archipelagos (Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands and Cabo Verde). Taxon Spiders (Araneae). Methods We established forest and dry habitat sites (each with five plots) on two islands per archipelago. We collected spiders using standardised sampling protocols. We tested the differences in beta diversity separately for each habitat and for each inferred category of ballooning (an aerial dispersal strategy) frequency across geographic scales through nested non-parametric permutational multivariate analyses of variance. We then tested whether ballooning and habitat influenced heterogeneity in species composition (dispersion in beta diversity) in the two habitat types. We analysed the effects of habitat and ballooning on species abundance distribution (SAD) and rarity by fitting Gambin models and evaluating the contribution of ballooning categories to SAD. Results Communities of the same archipelago and habitat were taxonomically more similar, and beta diversity increased with geographic scale, being greater in dry habitats. There was greater species replacement among assemblages in dry habitats than in forests, with greater differences for rare ballooners. There were no differences in SAD between habitats although dry habitat sites seemed to harbour more species with low abundances (rare species) than forests. Main conclusions Habitat type does not only condition the differences between spider assemblages of the same habitat but also the scale at which they occur. These differences may be determined by the heterogeneity in the physical structure of each habitat as well as how much this structure facilitates aerial dispersal (ballooning), and should be considered in theories/hypotheses on island community assembly as well as in conservation strategies.
2025-10-28T12:15:10Z
Malumbres‐Olarte, Jagoba Rigal, François Girardello, Marco Cardoso, Pedro Crespo, Luís Carlos Amorim, Isabel R. Arnedo, Miquel Boieiro, Mário Carvalho, José Carlos Carvalho, Rui Gabriel, Rosalina Lamelas‐Lopez, Lucas López, Heriberto Paulo, Octávio S. Pereira, Fernando Pérez‐Delgado, Antonio J. Rego, Carla Romeiras, Maria Ros‐Prieto, Alejandra Oromí, Pedro Vieira, Ana Emerson, Brent C. Borges, Paulo A. V.
A metabarcoding tool to detect predation of the honeybee Apis mellifera and other wild insects by the invasive Vespa velutina
The invasive Vespa velutina has been widely referred as an effective predator of honeybees. Despite the potential risk to pollination services provision and honey production, there is no accurate quantification and assessment of its real consequences for honeybees. To date, the identification of the honeybee and other insects in the diet of V. velutina has been investigated by direct observation of adult foraging or examination of food pellets. To overcome these limitations, in this study we used a DNA metabarcoding approach to evaluate the usefulness of different types of sample (jaws and stomachs collected from workers and larval faecal pellets taken from the hornet comb) to investigate the predation of V. velutina upon honeybees, and potentially on other insects. Honeybee DNA was identified in all types of samples, but larval faecal pellets retrieved the higher number of reads of honeybee DNA and the largest diversity at all taxonomic levels. Over all samples we could identify 4 orders, 9 families, 6 genera and 1 species of prey. We estimate that collecting 6 workers is sufficient to identify honeybee predation by a colony using worker’s jaws. Stomachs were the least useful sample type to detect honeybee DNA. The presence of honeybee DNA in all analysed colonies irrespective of collection site, and the variety of insect orders detected in the diet support current concerns over the acknowledged negative impact of V. velutina on managed honeybees and its potential threat to pollination services provision.
2025-10-28T12:08:55Z
Verdasca, Maria João Godinho, Raquel Rocha, Rita Gomes Portocarrero, Marco Gigante Carvalheiro, Luísa Sampaio e rebelo, Rui Rebelo, Hugo
Resilience of Epiphytic Lichens to Combined Effects of Increasing Nitrogen and Solar Radiation
Lichens are classified into different functional groups depending on their ecological and physiological response to a given environmental stressor. However, knowledge on lichen response to the synergistic effect of multiple environmental factors is extremely scarce, although vital to get a comprehensive understanding of the effects of global change. We exposed six lichen species belonging to different functional groups to the combined effects of two nitrogen (N) doses and direct sunlight involving both high temperatures and ultraviolet (UV) radiation for 58 days. Irrespective of their functional group, all species showed a homogenous response to N with cumulative, detrimental effects and an inability to recover following sunlight, UV exposure. Moreover, solar radiation made a tolerant species more prone to N pollution’s effects. Our results draw attention to the combined effects of global change and other environmental drivers on canopy defoliation and tree death, with consequences for the protection of ecosystems.
2025-10-28T12:15:24Z
Morillas, Lourdes Roales, Javier Cruz, Cristina Munzi, Silvana
High elevation bird communities in the Swiss Alps exhibit reduced fecundity and lifespan independently of phylogenetic effects
The merging of community ecology and phylogenetic biology allows us to link broader evolutionary processes to local ecological processes, thereby increasing our understanding of community assembly. A recurrent way to test how species assemblages respond to diferent abiotic conditions and evaluate the role of evolutionary constraints in community assembly is through using environmental gradients as natural treatments. Here, we combine phylogenetic and trait-based methods to evaluate how the phylogenetic diversity and composition of bird assemblages and their community-weighted traits vary along an elevational gradient in the Swiss Alps. For this purpose, we used four life-history traits considered to be key indicators of individual species response to environmental changes: clutch size, number of breeding attempts, dispersal capacity and lifespan. Controlling for phylogeny, we determined whether environmental flters (elevation, habitat type) act on these traits independently of the level of relatedness among species. We found that phylogenetic dispersion decreases with elevation, but the signature of phylogenetic clustering was weak. Phylogenetic fuzzy weighting showed that the distribution of bird species across plots was related to the two environmental gradients; nonetheless, such infuence was not determined by the phylogenetic relationships in either case. That is, there are no specifc clades associated with particular elevation or habitat types. We also found that high elevation communities around the treeline were composed of species with lower reproductive rates, reduced lifespan, and lower dispersal capacity, which would make them less resilient to environmental change. Although traits showed moderate phylogenetic signal, only the lifespan was phylogenetically structured. In the remaining cases, the trait-environment association was not mediated by the phylogenetic relationships among taxa. Our study indicates that evolutionary constraints do not represent a signifcant driver of community assembly in Alpine bird communities and support the notion that phylogeny may often not be a good proxy for traits subject to environmental fltering.
2025-10-28T12:11:16Z
García-Navas, Vicente Sattler, Thomas Schmid, Hans Ozgul, Arpat
Drivers of human-wildlife impact events involving mammals in Southeastern Brazil
Annually millions of animals are killed as a result of human-wildlife impacts. Each year the NGO Associação Mata Ciliar (NGOMC), in Southeastern Brazil, receives and rehabilitates thousands of animals. We evaluated how natural and anthropogenic characteristics affect the risk of different types of human-wildlife impacts for mammals that arrive at the NGOMC; and explore the relationship between both the animal's size and the type of human-wildlife impact event, survival rates and the likelihood that these animals can be fully rehabilitated. To test our hypotheses regarding the drivers and consequences of the total number of human-wildlife impact events, traffic collisions, electrocutions, and requested removals, we used records of the mammals that arrived at the NGOMC between 2012 and 2018, and obtained data on environmental attributes and anthropogenic factors at the municipality level, as well as species weights. The total number of human-wildlife impact events and of requested removals were both positively correlated with deforestation rate and urban area. The number of traffic collisions was positively related to the number of fires. Municipalities with larger urban areas were more likely to have at least one electrocuted mammal. Temporally, the number of fires two months before was positively correlated with the number of human-wildlife impact events. Traffic collisions and electrocutions more frequently resulted in the death of the animal, than did other events. Animals that died were heavier on average than those that remained in captivity or were successfully released back into the wild. We conclude that human-wildlife impact event rates should decline with lower rates of deforestation, less anthropogenic fires and the adoption of other specific measures to avoid both traffic collisions with fauna and electrocutions.
2025-10-28T12:20:34Z
Hilário, Renato Carvalho, W.D. Gheler-Costa, C. Rosalino, L. M. Marques, T.A. Adania, C.H. Paulino, J.S. Almeida, P.M. Mustin, K.