Water hardness is a property depending on the presence of alkaline earth metals, mainly calcium and magnesium. Among the strategies for water quality monitoring, ecotoxicological assays are performed to minimize impacts and classify water bodies. For these laboratory evaluations parameters are previously defined in the guidelines, including water hardness for both cultivation and testing medium...

Although modern assisted reproduction techniques is helping to overcome severe male factor infertility, conventional treatment modalities are still the first approach to male fertility disorders. The critical step in treating male infertility is to evaluate properly every male partner of an infertile couple and to generate the suitable treatment strategy. Specific medical management of infertil...

Abstract Investing in the current reproduction requires diverting energy resources from other metabolic functions, which may compromise future and lifespan. To solve this trade-off, an individual consider its labile state to decide how much invest reproduction. We tested experimentally whether “state quality” of male rock lizards influences their reproductive strategies. improve nutritional sta...

The molecular interactions between reproductive cells are critical for determining whether sexual reproduction between individuals results in fertilization and can result in barriers to interspecific hybridization. However, it is a challenge to define the complete molecular exchange between reproductive partners because parents contribute to a complex mixture of cells during reproduction. We un...

Trachoma programs have dramatically reduced the prevalence of the ocular chlamydia that cause the disease. Some have hypothesized that immunity to the infection may be reduced because of program success in reducing the incidence of infection, and transmission may then increase. Longitudinal studies of multiple communities would be necessary to test this hypothesis. Here, we quantify transmissio...

There is a strong association between nutrition and reproduction. Chronic dietary energy deficits as well as energy surpluses can impair reproductive capacity. Metabolic status impacts reproductive function at systemic level, modulating the hypothalamic GnRH neuronal network and/or the pituitary gonadotropin secretion through several hormones and neuropeptides, and at the ovarian level, acting ...

An enormous diversity of antigenically distinct proteins is found in seminal plasma. These include proteases, protease inhibitors, signal transduction molecules, protein kinases and phosphatases, transporter proteins, structural molecules, and immune response proteins. Sperm, too, carry a plethora of surface proteins; these mediate species-specific binding to the zona pellucida surrounding the ...

In many animal societies, a small proportion of dominant females monopolize reproduction by actively suppressing subordinates. Theory assumes that this is because subordinate reproduction depresses the fitness of dominants, yet the effect of subordinate reproduction on dominant behaviour and reproductive success has never been directly assessed. Here, we describe the consequences of experimenta...

Periodontal surgical procedures may not always offer a predictable level of success in the reproduction of a natural gingival architecture. Two different nonsurgical approaches are described for the management of soft tissue deficiencies in anterior implant-supported restorations. Clinically acceptable esthetic outcomes of anterior implant restorations can be achieved by using zirconium custom ...

The past decade has revealed the bacterium Wolbachia as the most widespread symbiont of arthropods and nematodes. Behind this evolutionary success is an remarkable variety of effects on host biology, ranging from manipulation of reproduction in favor of females to more classical mutualistic interactions. Here we discuss the potential of Wolbachia for promoting evolutionary changes in its hosts.