Knowledge of population ancestry from genetic markers is essential, for example, to understand the history of human migration and to carry out admixture and association studies. Here we assess the genome ancestry of the Azorean population through analysis of six Alu polymorphic sites (TPA-25, ACE, APO, B65, PV92, and D1) in 65 Azoreans and 30 Portuguese unrelated blood donors and compare data for the Y-chromosome and mtDNA. Allele frequencies were calculated by direct counting. Statistical analysis was performed using Arlequin 2.0. Nei's genetic distance was calculated with DISPAN software, and trees were constructed by neighbor joining (NJ) using PHYLIP 3.63. The results show that all Alu insertions were polymorphic. APO is the closest to fixation. The less frequent insertions are PV92 and D1 in the Azores and Portugal, respectively. ACE and TPA-25 show the highest values of heterozygosity in both populations. Allele frequencies are very similar to those obtained in European populations. These results are validated by the Y-chromosome and mtDNA data, where the majority of the maternal and paternal lineages are European. Overall, these data are reflected in the phylogenetic tree, in which the Azoreans and the Portuguese branch with Catalans, Andalusians, Moroccans, and Algerians. We conclude that the population of the Azores shows no significant genetic differences from that of mainland Portugal and that it is an outbred population. Moreover, the data validate the use of Alu insertion polymorphisms to assess the origin and history of human populations.

Colaço, A., Bettencourt, R., Costa, V., Lino, S., Lopes, H., Martins, I., Pires, L., Prieto, C., and Serrão Santos, R. 2011. LabHorta: a controlled aquarium system for monitoring physiological characteristics of the hydrothermal vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: 349–356. LabHorta is a facility composed of laboratories and retrievable deep-sea cages created to support and expand the capabilities of research cruises. It also enhances the ability to conduct experimental studies with organisms from deep-sea hydrothermal vents and other deep-sea environments, while keeping them under controlled conditions of pressure and water chemistry. This paper presents a case study with the vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus (which harbours a dual symbiosis) collected at the Menez Gwen hydrothermal vent field at 840-m depth, transported to experimental aquaria at atmospheric pressure and maintained under four different controlled experimental conditions to study their comparative condition index (CI). Environmental parameters were monitored daily and efforts were made to keep these constant. During the first few months, there were differences between the CI scores of mussels kept under the various conditions. After 6 months, the differences are not so clear but mussels still had sulphur-oxidizing bacteria when fed with sulphide. The methane oxidizer bacteria disappear even in the presence of methane. A range of CI scores appeared as a function of the culture type. The LabHorta facility is a good tool for performing long-term physiological studies of deep-sea organisms, simulating possible changes in the natural environmental where they normally thrive.

Weight-length relationships were estimated for 27 demersal fish species of the Cape Verde archipelago. Samples were collected in October and November 2000 using longline gear in depths up to 600 m, and occasionally to 1200 m. The b values were within expected ranges, varying between 2.406 and 3.761, except for Syacium micrurum (1.574) and Paraconger notialis (4.476), which presented strong allometries instigated through further analysis. This work revises previous literature in the archipelago and provides the first reference on weight-length parameters for 10 fish species worldwide and for 21 species of the Cape Verde archipelago.

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The restoration and protection of natural habitats enhance biological diversity (biodiversity; box 1). These two concepts (natural habitats and biodiversity) are interdependent because complex symbiotic interspecies relationships are the foundation of thriving natural habitats. Nearly every aspect of our survival depends on exploiting natural resources-when land is converted for food production and housing, for example, or for the extraction of energy, raw materials, and water. The unsustainable use of natural resources has led to short term improvements in human health characterised by increases in life expectancy and a global decline in poverty. 1 But these are matched by an unprecedented alteration of the natural world characterised by loss of primary forests, species extinction, concentration of greenhouse gases, and ocean acidification, among others. 1 This has perilous consequences to the planet and to human health in the long term. Box 1: Biodiversity and ecosystemsThe Convention on Biological Diversity defines biological diversity (biodiversity) as the variability among living organisms from all sources (including terrestrial, marine, and other aquatic ecosystems) and the ecological complexes of which they are part. This includes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems. Ecosystem means a dynamic complex of plant, animal, and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit. Habitat means the place or type of site where an organism or population naturally occurs. Biodiversity should be preserved at three levels: ecosystem, species, and genetic. In other words, we should preserve a diversity of ecosystems on Earth, and within those ecosystems we should preserve a diversity of species, as the more biodiverse ecosystems are resilient to change. Genetic diversity within a species refers to all the genes and alleles contained in the individuals of that species. It serves as a reservoir of development possibilities, and it can help species adapt to future environment changes.