Confronting a post-pandemic new-normal-threats and opportunities to trust-based relationships in natural resource science and management.

Natural resource governance is inherently complex owing to the socio-ecological systems in which it is embedded. Working arrangements have been fundamentally transformed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic with potential negative impacts on trust-based social networks foundational to resource management and transboundary governance. To inform development of a post-pandemic new-normal in resource management, we examined trust relationships using the Laurentian Great Lakes of North America as a case study. 82.9% (n = 97/117) of Great Lakes fishery managers and scientists surveyed indicated that virtual engagement was effective for maintaining well-established relationships during the pandemic; however, 76.7% (n = 89/116) of respondents indicated in-person engagement to be more effective than virtual engagement for building and maintaining trust. Despite some shortcomings, virtual or remote engagement presents opportunities, such as: (1) care and nurturing of well-established long-term relationships; (2) short-term (1-3 years) trust maintenance; (3) peer-peer or mentor-mentee coordination; (4) supplemental communications; (5) producer-push knowledge dissemination; and, if done thoughtfully, (6) enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion. Without change, pre-pandemic trust-based relationships foundational to cooperative, multinational, resource management are under threat.

BMP1 and TLL1 Are Required for Maintaining Periodontal Homeostasis.

Mutations in bone morphogenetic protein 1 (BMP1) in humans or deletion of BMP1 and related protease tolloid like 1 (TLL1) in mice lead to osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). Here, we show progressive periodontal defects in mice in which both BMP1 and TLL1 have been conditionally ablated, including malformed periodontal ligament (PDL) (recently shown to play key roles in normal alveolar bone formation), significant loss in alveolar bone mass ( P < 0.01), and a sharp reduction in cellular cementum. Molecular mechanism studies revealed a dramatic increase in the uncleaved precursor of type I collagen (procollagen I) and a reduction in dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP1), which is partially responsible for defects in extracellular matrix (ECM) formation and mineralization. We also showed a marked increase in the expression of matrix metallopeptidase 13 (MMP13) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP), leading to an acceleration in periodontal breakdown. Finally, we demonstrated that systemic application of antibiotics significantly improved the alveolar bone and PDL damage of the knockdown phenotype, which are thus shown to be partially secondary to pathogen-induced inflammation. Together, identification of the novel roles of BMP1 and TLL1 in maintaining homeostasis of periodontal formation, partly via biosynthetic processing of procollagen I and DMP1, provides novel insights into key contributions of the extracellular matrix environment to periodontal homeostasis and contributes toward understanding of the pathology of periodontitis.

Ontogenetic shifts in morphology and resource use of cisco Coregonus artedi.

Two previously described lacustrine cisco Coregonus spp. morphs [i.e. a small (<300 mm fork length, L(F)), low-gillraker (≤44) morph and a large (≥300 mm L(F) ), high-gillraker (≥45) morph] from Great Slave Lake, NT, Canada, were found to be synonymous with cisco Coregonus artedi. Geometric body shape did not differ between the two size classes nor could they be differentiated by 24 size-corrected linear measurements, indicating that the two groups had similar phenotypes. Strong, positive correlations between all linear characters and geometric centroid size (a composite variable of fish body length, mass and age) suggested that body morphology changed with age as fish grew. Total gillraker number (N(GR)) increased with L(F) according to: N(GR) = 36.3 + 0.034L(F). Differences in gillraker number and phenotype with age and size were explained by shifts in habitat and trophic resource use. Relative abundance within 0-30, 30-60, 60-90 and >90 m depth strata differed between size classes suggesting that morphology changed when fish shifted their habitat as they grew older. Large C. artedi had lower δ(13)C and slightly higher δ(15)N, indicating greater reliance on pelagic prey resources (i.e. more or larger zooplankton, such as Mysis spp.), compared to small C. artedi, which relied slightly more on benthic prey. Gillraker shape and number have always been used as key diagnostic characters in coregonine taxonomy; based on the findings presented here, ontogenetic shifts should be accounted for in resulting classifications.

Attenuation of Microbial Growth on Modified Atmosphere-Packaged Fish.

Four species of fish from Atlantic waters, Meronia americanus (perch), Cynoscion regalis (seatrout), Micropogon undulatis (croaker) and Pomatomus saltatrix (bluefish), were processed (gutted or filleted), packaged under carbon dioxide and refrigerated. Stability of the fish under the modified atmosphere preservation (MAP) system was compared to that of fish stored conventionally. Use of the MAP system resulted in a 45 to 55% increase in stability, primarily due to an extension in the lag phase of psychrotrophic organisms and to their reduced growth rate in the logarithmic phase. By the 10th day of storage, the conventionally packed fish always exhibited a 100-fold higher psychrotroph count than the CO2-packed fish. Levels of Vibrio parahaemolyticus were negligible in this MAP system and no Salmonella spp. or Staphylococcus aureus was detected, even at an abuse temperature (10°C) of storage. Positive evidence for preformed Clostridium botulinum toxin was lacking.