TY - JOUR AU - Bókony, Veronika AU - Kalina, Csenge AU - Ujhegyi, Nikolett AU - Mikó, Zsanett AU - Lefler, Kinga Katalin AU - Vili, Nóra AU - Gál, Zoltán AU - Gabor, Caitlin R. AU - Hoffmann, Orsolya Ivett TI - Does stress make males? An experiment on the role of glucocorticoids in anuran sex reversal JF - JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY PART A: ECOLOGICAL AND INTEGRATIVE PHYSIOLOGY J2 - J EXP ZOOL PART A VL - 341 PY - 2024 IS - 2 SP - 172 EP - 181 PG - 10 SN - 2471-5638 DO - 10.1002/jez.2772 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34476994 ID - 34476994 N1 - Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Plant Protection Institute, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Budapest, Hungary Department of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest, Budapest, Hungary Department of Aquaculture, Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Safety, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Science, Gödöllő, Hungary Department of Animal Biotechnology, Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Science, Gödöllő, Hungary Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, United States Export Date: 20 February 2024 Correspondence Address: Bókony, V.; Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Herman Ottó út 15, Hungary; email: bokony.veronika@atk.hu Correspondence Address: Gabor, C.R.; Department of Biology, United States; email: gabor@txstate.edu AB - Environmentally sensitive sex determination may help organisms adapt to environmental change but also makes them vulnerable to anthropogenic stressors, with diverse consequences for population dynamics and evolution. The mechanisms translating environmental stimuli to sex are controversial: although several fish experiments supported the mediator role of glucocorticoid hormones, results on some reptiles challenged it. We tested this hypothesis in amphibians by investigating the effect of corticosterone on sex determination in agile frogs ( Rana dalmatina ). This species is liable to environmental sex reversal whereby genetic females develop into phenotypic males. After exposing tadpoles during sex determination to waterborne corticosterone, the proportion of genetic females with testes or ovotestes increased from 11% to up to 32% at 3 out of 4 concentrations. These differences were not statistically significant except for the group treated with 10 nM corticosterone, and there was no monotonous dose‐effect relationship. These findings suggest that corticosterone is unlikely to mediate sex reversal in frogs. Unexpectedly, animals originating from urban habitats had higher sex‐reversal and corticosterone‐release rates, reduced body mass and development speed, and lower survival compared to individuals collected from woodland habitats. Thus, anthropogenic environments may affect both sex and fitness, and the underlying mechanisms may vary across ectothermic vertebrates. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Bókony, Veronika AU - Balogh, Emese AU - Ujszegi, János AU - Ujhegyi, Nikolett AU - Szederkényi, Márk AU - Hettyey, Attila TI - Tadpoles Develop Elevated Heat Tolerance in Urban Heat Islands Regardless of Sex JF - EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY J2 - EVOL BIOL PY - 2024 SN - 0071-3260 DO - 10.1007/s11692-024-09626-7 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34561992 ID - 34561992 N1 - Department of Evolutionary Ecology, HUN-REN Centre for Agricultural Research, Plant Protection Institute, Herman Ottó út 15, Budapest, 1022, Hungary Molecular Ecology Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest, István u. 2, Budapest, 1078, Hungary Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, Institute of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter stny. 1/C, Budapest, 1117, Hungary Export Date: 20 February 2024 Correspondence Address: Bókony, V.; Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Herman Ottó út 15, Hungary; email: bokony.veronika@atk.hun-ren.hu AB - The ability of wildlife to endure the effects of high temperatures is increasingly important for biodiversity conservation under climate change and spreading urbanization. Organisms living in urban heat islands can have elevated heat tolerance via phenotypic or transgenerational plasticity or microevolution. However, the prevalence and mechanisms of such thermal adaptations are barely known in aquatic organisms. Furthermore, males and females can differ in heat tolerance, which may lead to sex-biased mortality, yet it is unknown how sex differences in thermal biology influence urban phenotypic divergence. To address these knowledge gaps, we measured critical thermal maxima (CTmax) in male and female agile frog (Rana dalmatina) tadpoles captured from warm urban ponds and cool woodland ponds, and in a common-garden experiment where embryos collected from both habitat types were raised in the laboratory. We found higher CTmax in urban-dwelling tadpoles compared to their counterparts living in woodland ponds. This difference was reversed in the common-garden experiment: tadpoles originating from urban ponds had lower CTmax than tadpoles originating from woodland ponds. We found no effect of sex on CTmax or its difference between habitats. These results demonstrate that aquatic amphibian larvae can respond to the urban heat island effect with increased heat tolerance similarly to other, mostly terrestrial taxa studied so far, and that phenotypic plasticity may be the main driver of this response. Our findings also suggest that heat-induced mortality may be independent of sex in tadpoles, but research is needed in many more taxa to explore potentially sex-dependent urban thermal responses. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Hernández‐Herrera, C. I. AU - Pérez‐Mendoza, H. A. AU - Fornoni, J. TI - Geographic variation in developmental plasticity among populations of the canyon treefrog in response to temperature and pond‐drying JF - JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY J2 - J ZOOL PY - 2024 SN - 0952-8369 DO - 10.1111/jzo.13202 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/35166996 ID - 35166996 AB - Understanding how species respond to environmental changes, particularly in the context of climate change, is crucial for biodiversity conservation. This study focuses on the plastic responses of canyon tree frog ( Dryophytes arenicolor ) larvae to variations in temperature and pond‐drying, examining potential consequences of climate change. Frog larvae serve as an excellent model due to their high responsiveness to environmental cues during development. We analysed the impact of temperature and pond‐drying on morphological and life‐history traits, via a common garden experiment with individuals from three distinct populations with different ecological conditions. The experiments revealed significant differences in responses among populations, indicating geographic variation in plasticity. Pond‐drying treatments led to reduced survival and reduction of morphological traits and growth, challenging the assumption that tadpoles have adaptive responses to drying conditions. In contrast, temperature treatments showed variable effects, with elevated temperatures generally favouring growth rates, reducing metamorphosis time, and having population‐specific morphological shifts. We emphasize the importance of considering both morphological and life‐history traits, as well as geographic variation, in assessing species' vulnerability to climate change. Furthermore, the integration of environmental standardized plasticity index (ESPI) and relative distances plasticity index (RDPI) in amphibian developmental plasticity will allow to quantify and compare plastic responses among populations and even other amphibian species in which these metrics are obtained in the future. Our results underscore the complexity of phenotypic plasticity, revealing genotype–environment interactions. These findings contribute valuable insights into the potential adaptability of D. arenicolor populations to ongoing climate changes, highlighting the need for comprehensive inter‐population studies for a more nuanced understanding of species' responses to environmental change, and suggest that certain populations may be more vulnerable to extinction or better equipped to handle climate change based on their ability to adapt to environmental change. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Ujszegi, János AU - Ujhegyi, Nikolett AU - Balogh, Emese AU - Mikó, Zsanett AU - Kásler, Andrea AU - Hettyey, Attila AU - Bókony, Veronika TI - No sex‐dependent mortality in an amphibian upon infection with the chytrid fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis JF - ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION J2 - ECOL EVOL VL - 14 PY - 2024 IS - 9 SN - 2045-7758 DO - 10.1002/ece3.70219 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/35192569 ID - 35192569 N1 - e70219 ECE-2024-03-00595.R2; AB - One of the major factors driving the currently ongoing biodiversity crisis is the anthropogenic spread of infectious diseases. Diseases can have conspicuous consequences, such as mass mortality events, but may also exert covert but similarly severe effects, such as sex ratio distortion via sex‐biased mortality. Chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is among the most important threats to amphibian biodiversity. Yet, whether Bd infection can skew sex ratios in amphibians is currently unknown, although such a hidden effect may cause the already dwindling amphibian populations to collapse. To investigate this possibility, we collected common toad ( Bufo bufo ) tadpoles from a natural habitat in Hungary and continuously treated them until metamorphosis with sterile Bd culture medium (control), or a liquid culture of a Hungarian or a Spanish Bd isolate. Bd prevalence was high in animals that died during the experiment but was almost zero in individuals that survived until the end of the experiment. Both Bd treatments significantly reduced survival after metamorphosis, but we did not observe sex‐dependent mortality in either treatment. However, a small number of genotypically female individuals developed male phenotype (testes) in the Spanish Bd isolate treatment. Therefore, future research is needed to ascertain if larval Bd infection can affect sex ratio in common toads through female‐to‐male sex reversal. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Burraco, Pablo AU - Torres-Montoro, Juan Carlos AU - Gomez-Mestre, Ivan TI - Larval plastic responses to warming and desiccation delay gonadal maturation in postmetamorphic spadefoot toads JF - EVOLUTION J2 - EVOLUTION VL - 77 PY - 2023 IS - 12 SP - 2687 EP - 2695 PG - 9 SN - 0014-3820 DO - 10.1093/evolut/qpad180 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34288210 ID - 34288210 N1 - Export Date: 20 February 2024 CODEN: EVOLA Correspondence Address: Burraco, P.; Evolution and Development Group, Spain; email: burraco@ebd.csic.es Correspondence Address: Gomez-Mestre, I.; Evolution and Development Group, Spain; email: igmestre@ebd.csic.es AB - Developmental plasticity allows organisms to adjust life-history traits to varying environmental conditions, which can have concomitant effects across life stages. Many amphibians are suitable model systems to study plasticity because their larvae can adjust growth and differentiation under fluctuating environments. It is unknown, however, whether somatic and gonadal differentiation are equally affected by environmentally induced plasticity or whether their decoupling alters gonadal maturation postmetamorphosis, which may affect fitness. We tested if developmental acceleration in response to warming and desiccation risk results in shifts in gonadal maturation during metamorphosis and postmetamorphic growth in western spadefoot toads (Pelobates cultripes). We found additive effects of increased temperature and desiccation risk on development and growth at metamorphosis, which largely constrained gonadal maturation in metamorphic and postmetamorphic individuals of both sexes. Furthermore, the conditions experienced by larvae incurred sex-specific carryover effects on the gonadal maturation of juveniles 5 months after metamorphosis. In females, high temperature delayed ovarian maturation regardless of the water level. In males, exposure to high temperature and high water levels slightly delayed the testes' maturation. These results highlight the relevance of larval plasticity in the gonadal maturation of species undergoing metamorphosis, which may have implications for population demographics and the evolution of life histories. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Carvalho, Tamilie AU - Si, Catherine AU - Clemons, Rebecca A. AU - Faust, Evelyn AU - James, Timothy Y. TI - Amphibian Hymenochirus boettgeri as an experimental model for infection studies with the chytrid fungus batrachochytrium dendrobatidis JF - VIRULENCE J2 - VIRULENCE VL - 14 PY - 2023 IS - 1 SN - 2150-5594 DO - 10.1080/21505594.2023.2270252 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34194179 ID - 34194179 N1 - Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan Herbarium, Ann Arbor, MI, United States Export Date: 20 February 2024 Correspondence Address: James, T.Y.; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, United States; email: tyjames@umich.edu LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Herczeg, Dávid AU - Holly, Dóra AU - Kásler, Andrea AU - Bókony, Veronika AU - Papp, Tibor AU - Takács-Vágó, Hunor AU - Ujszegi, János AU - Hettyey, Attila TI - Amphibian larvae benefit from a warm environment under simultaneous threat from chytridiomycosis and ranavirosis JF - OIKOS J2 - OIKOS VL - 11 PY - 2023 PG - 11 SN - 0030-1299 DO - 10.1111/oik.09953 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34074949 ID - 34074949 N1 - Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Centre for Agricultural Research, Plant Protection Institute, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, Budapest, Hungary ELKH-ELTE-MTM Integrative Ecology Research Group, Budapest, Hungary Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary Doctoral School of Biology, Institute of Biology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary Institute for Veterinary Medical Research, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, Budapest, Hungary Department of Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest, Hungary Export Date: 29 August 2023 CODEN: OIKSA Correspondence Address: Herczeg, D.; Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Hungary; email: herczegdavid88@gmail.com LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Messina, Simone AU - Costantini, David AU - Eens, Marcel TI - Impacts of rising temperatures and water acidification on the oxidative status and immune system of aquatic ectothermic vertebrates: A meta-analysis JF - SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT J2 - SCI TOTAL ENVIRON VL - 868 PY - 2023 PG - 11 SN - 0048-9697 DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.161580 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/33979703 ID - 33979703 N1 - Cited By :1 Export Date: 29 August 2023 CODEN: STEVA Correspondence Address: Messina, S.; Department of Ecological and Biological Sciences, Italy; email: simone.messina@unitus.it AB - Species persistence in the Anthropocene is dramatically threatened by global climate change. Large emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from human activities are driving increases in mean temperature, intensity of heatwaves, and acidification of oceans and freshwater bodies. Ectotherms are particularly sensitive to CO2-induced stressors, because the rate of their metabolic reactions, as well as their immunological performance, are affected by environmental tem-peratures and water pH. We reviewed and performed a meta-analysis of 56 studies, involving 1259 effect sizes, that compared oxidative status or immune function metrics between 42 species of ectothermic vertebrates exposed to long-term increased temperatures or water acidification (>= 48 h), and those exposed to control parameters resembling natural conditions. We found that CO2-induced stressors enhance levels of molecular oxidative damages in ectotherms, while the activity of antioxidant enzymes was upregulated only at higher temperatures, possibly due to an increased rate of biochemical reactions dependent on the higher ambient temperature. Differently, both temperature and water acidification showed weak impacts on immune function, indicating different direction (increase or decrease) of responses among immune traits. Further, we found that the intensity of temperature treatments (Delta degrees C) and their duration, enhance the physiological response of ectotherms, pointing to stronger effects of prolonged extreme warming events (i.e., heatwaves) on the oxidative status. Finally, adult individuals showed weaker antioxidant enzy-matic responses to an increase in water temperature compared to early life stages, suggesting lower acclimation capac-ity. Antarctic species showed weaker antioxidant response compared to temperate and tropical species, but level of uncertainty in the antioxidant enzymatic response of Antarctic species was high, thus pairwise comparisons were statistically non-significant. Overall, the results of this meta-analysis indicate that the regulation of oxidative status might be one key mechanism underlying thermal plasticity in aquatic ectothermic vertebrates. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Nolan, Nadine AU - Hayward, Matthew W. AU - Klop-Toker, Kaya AU - Mahony, Michael AU - Lemckert, Frank AU - Callen, Alex TI - Complex Organisms Must Deal with Complex Threats: How Does Amphibian Conservation Deal with Biphasic Life Cycles? JF - ANIMALS J2 - ANIMALS-BASEL VL - 13 PY - 2023 IS - 10 SP - 1634 SN - 2076-2615 DO - 10.3390/ani13101634 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/33828779 ID - 33828779 N1 - Conservation Science Research Group, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle, CallaghanNSW 2308, Australia Eco Logical Australia Pty Ltd, Perth, WA 6000, Australia Cited By :1 Export Date: 29 August 2023 Correspondence Address: Nolan, N.; Conservation Science Research Group, Callaghan, Australia; email: nadine.nolan@uon.edu.au AB - The unprecedented rate of global amphibian decline is attributed to The Anthropocene, with human actions triggering the Sixth Mass Extinction Event. Amphibians have suffered some of the most extreme declines, and their lack of response to conservation actions may reflect challenges faced by taxa that exhibit biphasic life histories. There is an urgent need to ensure that conservation measures are cost-effective and yield positive outcomes. Many conservation actions have failed to meet their intended goals of bolstering populations to ensure the persistence of species into the future. We suggest that past conservation efforts have not considered how different threats influence multiple life stages of amphibians, potentially leading to suboptimal outcomes for their conservation. Our review highlights the multitude of threats amphibians face at each life stage and the conservation actions used to mitigate these threats. We also draw attention to the paucity of studies that have employed multiple actions across more than one life stage. Conservation programs for biphasic amphibians, and the research that guides them, lack a multi-pronged approach to deal with multiple threats across the lifecycle. Conservation management programs must recognise the changing threat landscape for biphasic amphibians to reduce their notoriety as the most threatened vertebrate taxa globally. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Woodruff, Mary J. AU - Sermersheim, Layne O. AU - Wolf, Sarah E. AU - Rosvall, Kimberly A. TI - Organismal effects of heat in a fixed ecological niche: Implications on the role of behavioral buffering in our changing world JF - SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT J2 - SCI TOTAL ENVIRON VL - 893 PY - 2023 SN - 0048-9697 DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164809 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/34013085 ID - 34013085 N1 - Export Date: 29 August 2023 CODEN: STEVA Correspondence Address: Woodruff, M.J.; Indiana University, 1001 E. 3rd St Rm A318, United States; email: woodrufm@iu.edu LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Nemesházi, Edina AU - Bókony, Veronika TI - Asymmetrical sex reversal: Does the type of heterogamety predict propensity for sex reversal? JF - BIOESSAYS J2 - BIOESSAYS VL - 44 PY - 2022 IS - 7 PG - 12 SN - 0265-9247 DO - 10.1002/bies.202200039 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/32818031 ID - 32818031 N1 - Export Date: 17 August 2022 CODEN: BIOEE Correspondence Address: Nemesházi, E.; Conservation Genetics Research Group, Hungary; email: nemeshazi.edina@protonmail.com Correspondence Address: Bókony, V.; Conservation Genetics Research Group, Hungary; email: bokony.veronika@atk.hu AB - Sex reversal, a mismatch between phenotypic and genetic sex, can be induced by chemical and thermal insults in ectotherms. Therefore, climate change and environmental pollution may increase sex-reversal frequency in wild populations, with wide-ranging implications for sex ratios, population dynamics, and the evolution of sex determination. We propose that reconsidering the half-century old theory "Witschi's rule" should facilitate understanding the differences between species in sex-reversal propensity and thereby predicting their vulnerability to anthropogenic environmental change. The idea is that sex reversal should be asymmetrical: more likely to occur in the homogametic sex, assuming that sex-reversed heterogametic individuals would produce new genotypes with reduced fitness. A review of the existing evidence shows that while sex reversal can be induced in both homogametic and heterogametic individuals, the latter seem to require stronger stimuli in several cases. We provide guidelines for future studies on sex reversal to facilitate data comparability and reliability. LA - English DB - MTMT ER - TY - JOUR AU - Nemesházi, Edina AU - Sramkó, Gábor AU - Laczkó, Levente AU - Balogh, Emese AU - Szatmári, Lajos AU - Vili, Nóra AU - Ujhegyi, Nikolett AU - Üveges, Bálint AU - Bókony, Veronika TI - Novel genetic sex markers reveal unexpected lack of, and similar susceptibility to, sex reversal in free-living common toads in both natural and anthropogenic habitats JF - MOLECULAR ECOLOGY J2 - MOL ECOL VL - 31 PY - 2022 IS - 7 SP - 2032 EP - 2043 PG - 12 SN - 0962-1083 DO - 10.1111/mec.16388 UR - https://m2.mtmt.hu/api/publication/32672823 ID - 32672823 N1 - Conservation Genetics Research Group, Department of Ecology, University of Veterinary Medicine Budapest, Budapest, Hungary Lendület Evolutionary Ecology Research Group, Plant Protection Institute, Centre for Agricultural Research, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, Budapest, Hungary MTA-DE Lendület Evolutionary Phylogenomics Research Group, Debrecen, Hungary Molecular Ecology and Evolution at Bangor, School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Wales, Bangor, United Kingdom Export Date: 12 April 2022 CODEN: MOECE Correspondence Address: Nemesházi, E.; Conservation Genetics Research Group, Hungary; email: nemeshazi.edina@protonmail.com LA - English DB - MTMT ER -