Age structure of a lizard along an elevational gradient reveals nonlinear lifespan patterns with altitude.

Lifespan is one of the main components of life history. Shorter lifespans can be expected in marginal habitats. However, in the case of ectotherms, lifespan typically increases with altitude, even though temperature-one of the main factors to determine ectotherms' life history-declines with elevation. This pattern can be explained by the fact that a shorter activity time favors survival. In this study, we analyzed how lifespan and other life-history traits of the lizard Psammodromus algirus vary along a 2,200 m elevational gradient in Sierra Nevada (SE Spain). Populations at intermediate altitudes (1,200-1,700 m), corresponding to the optimal habitat for this species, had the shortest lifespans, whereas populations inhabiting marginal habitats (at both low and at high altitudes) lived longest. Therefore, this lizard did not follow the typical pattern of ectotherms, as it also lived longer at the lower limit of its distribution, nor did it show a longer lifespan in areas with optimal habitats. These results might be explained by a complex combination of different gradients along the mountain, namely that activity time decreases with altitude whereas food availability increases. This could explain why lifespan was maximum at both high (limited activity time) and low (limited food availability) altitudes, resulting in similar lifespans in areas with contrasting environmental conditions. Our findings also indicated that reproductive investment and body condition increase with elevation, suggesting that alpine populations are locally adapted.

Morphological determinants of jumping performance in the Iberian green frog.

Predation is one of the main selective forces in nature, frequently selecting potential prey for developing escape strategies. Escape ability is typically influenced by several morphological parameters, such as morphology of the locomotor appendices, muscular capacity, body mass, or fluctuating asymmetry, and may differ between sexes and age classes. In this study, we tested the relationship among these variables and jumping performance in 712 Iberian green frogs Pelophylax perezi from an urban population. The results suggest that the main determinant of jumping capacity was body size (explaining 48% of variance). Larger frogs jumped farther, but jumping performance reached an asymptote for the largest frogs. Once controlled by structural body size, the heaviest frogs jumped shorter distances, suggesting a trade-off between fat storage and jumping performance. Relative hind limb length also determined a small but significant percentage of variance (2.4%) in jumping performance-that is, the longer the hind limbs, the greater the jumping capacity. Juveniles had relatively shorter and less muscular hind limbs than adults (for a given body size), and their jumping performance was poorer. In our study population, the hind limbs of the frogs were very symmetrical, and we found no effect of fluctuating asymmetry on jumping performance. Therefore, our study provides evidence that jumping performance in frogs is not only affected by body size, but also by body mass and hind limb length, and differ between age classes.

Fitter frogs from polluted ponds: The complex impacts of human-altered environments.

Human-modified habitats rarely yield outcomes that are aligned with conservation ideals. Landscapes that are subdivided by roads are no exception, precipitating negative impacts on populations due to fragmentation, pollution, and road kill. Although many populations in human-modified habitats show evidence for local adaptation, rarely does environmental change yield outright benefits for populations of conservation interest. Contrary to expectations, we report surprising benefits experienced by amphibian populations breeding and dwelling in proximity to roads. We show that roadside populations of the wood frog, Rana sylvatica, exhibit better locomotor performance and higher measures of traits related to fitness compared with frogs from less disturbed environments located further away from roads. These results contrast previous evidence for maladaptation in roadside populations of wood frogs studied elsewhere. Our results indicate that altered habitats might not be unequivocally detrimental and at times might contribute to metapopulation success. While the frequency of such beneficial outcomes remains unknown, their occurrence underscores the complexity of inferring consequences of environmental change.

Opposed elevational variation in prevalence and intensity of endoparasites and their vectors in a lizard.

Studying the causes of parasite geographic distribution is relevant to understand ecological and evolutionary processes that affect host populations as well as for species conservation. Temperature is one of the most important environmental variables affecting parasite distribution, as raising temperatures positively affect development, reproduction, and rate of transmission of both endo- and ectoparasites. In this context, it is generally accepted that, in mountains, parasite abundance decreases with elevation. However, empirical evidence on this topic is limited. In the present study, we analyzed the elevational variation of hemoparasites and ectoparasites of a lizard, Psammodromus algirus, along a 2,200-m elevational gradient in Sierra Nevada (SE Spain). As predicted, ectoparasite (mites, ticks, mosquitoes, and sandflies) abundance decreased with elevation. However, hemoparasite prevalence and intensity in the lizard augmented with altitude, showing a pattern contrary to their vectors (mites). We suggest that tolerance to hemoparasites may increase with elevation as a consequence of lizards at high altitudes taking advantage of increased body condition and food availability, and reduced oxidative stress. Moreover, lizards could have been selected for higher resistance against hemoparasites at lowlands (where higher rates of replication are expected), thus reducing hemoparasite prevalence and load. Our findings imply that, in a scenario of climate warming, populations of lizards at high elevation may face increased abundance of ectoparasites, accompanied with strong negative effects.

Prey availability, prey selection, and trophic niche width in the lizard Psammodromus algirus along an elevational gradient.

Mountains imply enormous environmental variation, with alpine habitats entailing harsh environments, especially for ectotherms such as lizards. This environmental variability also may imply variation in prey availability. However, little is known about how lizard trophic ecology varies with elevation. In this study, we analyze diet, prey availability, prey selection, and trophic niche width in the lacertid lizard Psammodromus algirus along a 2,200-m elevational gradient in the Sierra Nevada (SE Spain). The analysis of fecal samples has shown that Orthoptera, Formicidae, Hemiptera, Coleoptera, and Araneae are the main prey, although, according to their abundance in pitfall traps, Formicidae and Coleoptera are rejected by the lizard whereas Orthoptera, Hemiptera, and Araneae are preferred. Prey abundance and diversity increase with elevation and diet subtly varies along with the elevational gradient. The consumption of Coleoptera increases with elevation probably as a consequence of the lizard foraging more in open areas while basking. The electivity for Araneae increases with elevation. Araneae are rejected in the lowlands-where they are relatively abundant-whereas, at high elevation, this lizard positively selects them, despite they being less abundant. The lizard trophic niche width expands with elevation due to concomitant greater prey diversity and hence this lizard feeds on more prey types in highlands. Although no sex difference in diet has been found, the trophic niche is broader in females than males. As a whole, alpine lizards show a trophic niche similar to that found at lower elevations, suggesting that P. algirus is well adapted to the harsh environment found in alpine areas.

Remission of type 2 diabetes mellitus after bariatric surgery - comparison between procedures.

INTRODUCTION: We aimed to assess the mid-term type 2 diabetes mellitus recovery patterns in morbidly obese patients by comparing some relevant physiological parameters of patients of bariatric surgery between two types of surgical procedures: mixed (roux-en-Y gastric bypass and biliopancreatic diversion) and restrictive (sleeve gastrectomy). MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a prospective and observational study of co-morbid, type 2 diabetes mellitus evolution in 49 morbidly obese patients: 37 underwent mixed surgery procedures and 12 a restrictive surgery procedure. We recorded weight, height, body mass index, and glycaemic, lipid, and nutritional blood parameters, prior to procedure, as well as six and twelve months post-operatively. In addition, we tested for differences in patient recovery and investigated predictive factors in diabetes remission. RESULTS: Both glycaemic and lipid profiles diminished significantly to healthy levels by 6 and 12 months post intervention. Type 2 diabetes mellitus showed remission in more than 80% of patients of both types of surgical procedures, with no difference between them. Baseline body mass index, glycated haemoglobin, and insulin intake, among others, were shown to be valuable predictors of diabetes remission one year after the intervention. CONCLUSIONS: The choice of the type of surgical procedure did not significantly affect the remission rate of type 2 diabetes mellitus in morbidly obese patients. (Endokrynol Pol 2017; 68 (1): 18-25).

Ultraviolet radiation does not increase oxidative stress in the lizard Psammodromus algirus along an elevational gradient.

Lizards, as ectotherms, spend much time basking for thermoregulating exposed to solar radiation. Consequently, they are subjected to ultraviolet radiation (UVR), which is the most harmful component of solar radiation spectrum. UVR can provoke damages, from the molecular to tissue level, even cause death. Photooxidation triggered by UVR produces reactive oxidative species (ROS). When antioxidant machinery cannot combat the ROS concentration, oxidative stress occurs in the organisms. Given that UVR increases with elevation, we hypothesised that lizards from high elevations should be better adapted against UVR than lizards from lower elevations. In this work, we test this hypothesis in Psammodromus algirus along an elevation gradient (three elevational belts, from 300 to 2500 m above sea level). We ran an experiment in which lizards from each elevation belt were exposed to 5-hour doses of UVR (UV-light bulb, experimental group) or photosynthetically active radiation (white-light bulb, control group) and, 24 h after the exposure, we took tissue samples from the tail. We measured oxidative damage (lipid and protein peroxidation) and antioxidant capacity as oxidative-stress biomarkers. We found no differences in oxidative stress between treatments. However, consistent with a previous work, less oxidative damage appeared in lizards from the highlands. We conclude that UVR is not a stressor agent for P. algirus; however, our findings suggest that the lowland environment is more oxidative for lizards. Therefore, P. algirus is well adapted to inhabit a large elevation range, and this would favour the lizard in case it ascends in response to global climate change.

Oxidative stress decreases with elevation in the lizard Psammodromus algirus.

Oxidative stress is considered one of the main ecological and evolutionary forces. Several environmental stressors vary geographically and thus organisms inhabiting different sites face different oxidant environments. Nevertheless, there is scarce information about how oxidative damage and antioxidant defences vary geographically in animals. Here we study how oxidative stress varies from lowlands (300-700 m asl) to highlands (2200-2500 m asl) in the lizard Psammodromus algirus. To accomplish this, antioxidant enzymatic activity (catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, glutathione transferase, DT-diaphorase) and lipid peroxidation were assayed in tissue samples from the lizards' tail. Lipid peroxidation was higher in individuals from lowlands than from highlands, indicating higher oxidative stress in lowland lizards. These results suggest that environmental conditions are less oxidant at high elevations with respect to low ones. Therefore, our study shows that oxidative stress varies geographically, which should have important consequences for our understanding of geographic variation in physiology and life-history of organisms.