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Identification of genomic variability in population plays an important role in the clinical diagnostics of human genetic diseases. Thanks to rapid technological development in the field of massive parallel sequencing technologies, also known as next-generation sequencing (NGS), complex genomic analyses are now easier and cheaper than ever before, which consequently leads to more effective utilization of these techniques in clinical practice. However, interpretation of data from NGS is still challenging due to several issues caused by natural variability of DNA sequences in human populations. Therefore, development and realization of projects focused on description of genetic variability of local population (often called "national or digital genome") with a NGS technique is one of the best approaches to address this problem. The next step of the process is to share such data via publicly available databases. Such databases are important for the interpretation of variants with unknown significance or (likely) pathogenic variants in rare diseases or cancer or generally for identification of pathological variants in a patient's genome. In this paper, we have compiled an overview of published results of local genome sequencing projects from United Kingdom and Europe together with future plans and perspectives for newly announced ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this article is to assess the priorities of local governments (LGs) in Europe regarding climate change mitigation technologies evaluation in the electricity sector and to provide important insights for energy policy design. The study applies a hybrid weighting methodology to elicit LGs' preferences in a constructive and iterative way regarding the evaluation criteria of low-carbon energy technologies. Furthermore, the study employs three data collection and preference elicitation methods, namely: survey, workshop, and webinar. The study was conducted across thirty one (31) European LGs that were categorized according to three variables: population size, geographical region and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The analysis shows that "CO2 emissions" is the most important criterion among European LGs, followed by "mortality and morbidity" and "ecosystem damages". The results illustrate the potential synergies of climate and energy policies for addressing both CO2 emissions and air pollution. It was also found, based on a correlation analysis, that LGs with higher GDP per capita tend to provide higher weights to criteria related to security of energy supply and technological innovation. The current study provides insights on the actual LGs' priorities that are important to consider during low-carbon energy technologies evaluation and energy policy design. Interestingly, the results of the European LGs' preferences clearly show that the EU climate policy objectives have reached different levels of governance--and at this particular case, the local level. Furthermore, the developed methodology could be applied at different geographical regions to map other regions' LG priorities, but also at a group decision making context to elicit relevant stakeholders' preferences regarding low-carbon energy technologies and policy objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: In 2020, many countries around the world went into lockdown to limit the spread of COVID-19, and many people substantially reduced their outdoor activity and began socially distancing to avoid infection. Such rapid and widespread changes in the lives of people all over the world must have an impact on the environment and wildlife. Most of the current pandemic–wildlife papers focus on changes in the movement and behavior of wild animals. These changes, although interesting and worth documenting, may be ephemeral and may not have any significant effect on wildlife in the long run; they may only show how our daily presence may limit the presence and behavior of animals. In this paper, we suggest that scientific interest should be directed toward more permanent changes in the functioning of wildlife. One such topic is the lower road mortality rates of animals during the lockdown. In this study, hedgehog roadkill levels during the lockdown were over 50% lower than in the pre-pandemic years. Reduced road mortality in the case of hedgehogs may mean tens of thousands of survivors nationwide. We hypothesize that this may result in a change in the demographic and genetic characteristics of the population of hedgehogs, and also help to stop the long-term decline in the number of hedgehogs in Europe. Globally, wildlife is affected by unprecedented changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this paper, the lockdown effect on the traffic-related mortality in hedgehogs in an urban area was studied. Comparing the pre-pandemic (2018 and 2019) and pandemic (2020) years, we showed that hedgehog roadkill levels during the lockdown period were over 50% lower (which means a decrease greater than the decrease in road traffic in the same period measured by the number of accidents or the average number of vehicles per day). Based on literature data, we showed that this may mean at least tens of thousands of hedgehogs have survived on a national scale. We report the need to start intensive research on the possible demographic and genetic effects of this unique phenomenon. We also ask how stable the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic will be on wildlife and whether the lockdown (which is an anthropause) may reverse the negative trends in the decline in the number of wild species, including hedgehogs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The environmental impacts of transport infrastructure are attracting substantial research focus and road-induced mortality of wildlife is perhaps the most conspicuous impact of roads. Hedgehogs are a common victim of traffic collisions in Europe and several hedgehog species are showing marked population declines across their range. This review aims to consolidate current knowledge on the impacts of road mortality on the viability of populations of the five hedgehog species in Europe and identify research gaps. Previous studies have shown that roads are a major source of mortality for hedgehogs and that individuals with greater net movement, generally males, have the greatest likelihood of mortality. Road mortality also contributes to population isolation. More research is needed into how different individuals perceive, use and cross roads, as well as the efficacy of different mitigation measures (e.g., wildlife crossing structures) designed to reduce road mortality and population isolation. Assessing whether local hedgehog populations are at risk of extirpation or further declines due to road mortality is a prerequisite for effective conservation in environments affected by continuously developing road networks. Transport infrastructure is a pervasive element in modern landscapes and continues to expand to meet the demands of a growing human population and its associated resource consumption. Road-induced mortality is often thought to be a major contributor to the marked declines of European hedgehog populations. This review synthesizes available evidence on the population-level impacts of road mortality and the threat to population viability for the five hedgehog species in Europe. Local and national studies suggest that road mortality can cause significant depletions in population sizes, predominantly removing adult males. Traffic collisions are a probable cause of fragmentation effects, subsequently undermining ecological processes such as dispersal, as well as the genetic variance and fitness of isolated populations. Further studies are necessary to improve population estimates and explicitly examine the consequences of sex- and age-specific mortality rates. Hedgehogs have been reported to use crossing structures, such as road tunnels, yet evaluations of mitigation measures for population survival probability are largely absent. This highlights the need for robust studies that consider population dynamics and genetics in response to mitigation. In light of ongoing declines of hedgehog populations, it is paramount that applied research is prioritised and integrated into a holistic spatial planning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drosophila melanogaster recently spread from its tropical origin in Africa and became a cosmopolitan species that has adapted to a wide range of different thermal environments, including temperate climates. An important limiting factor of temperate climates has probably been their low and varying temperatures. The transcriptional output of genes can vary across temperatures, which might have been detrimental while settling in temperate environments. The reduction of temperature-sensitive expression of functionally important genes to ensure consistent levels of gene expression might have been relevant while adapting to such environments. In this study, we focus on the gene vestigial (vg) whose product is a key factor in wing development. We provide evidence that temperature-sensitivity of vg has been buffered in populations from temperate climates. We investigated temperature-sensitivity of vg gene expression in six natural populations, including four temperate populations (three from Europe and one from high-altitude Africa), and two tropical populations from the ancestral species range. All temperate populations exhibited a lower degree of temperature-induced expression plasticity than the tropical populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Revealing the genetic population structure in abundant avian species is crucial for understanding speciation, conservation, and evolutionary history. The Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio, an iconic songbird renowned for impaling its prey, is widely distributed as a breeder across much of Europe, Asia Minor and western Asia. However, in recent decades, many populations have declined significantly, as a result of habitat loss, hunting along migration routes, decrease of arthropod food, and climate change e.g., severe droughts in Africa. Within this context, gene flow among different breeding populations becomes critical to ensure the survival of the species, but we still lack an overview on the genetic diversity of the species. In this paper, we analyzed the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (mtDNA) and the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene (mtDNA) of 132 breeding Red-backed Shrikes from across the entire breeding range to address this knowledge gap. Our results revealed consistent genetic diversity and 76 haplotypes among the Eurasian populations. Birds are clustered in two major groups, with no clear geographical separation, as a direct consequence of Pleistocene glaciations and apparent lineage mixing in refugia. This has led to genetic panmixia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]