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Schneider K, Steward RA, Celorio-Mancera MDLP, Janz N, Moberg D, Wheat CW, Nylin S. Plasticity for the win: Flexible transcriptional response to host plant switches in the comma butterfly (Polygonia c-album). Mol Ecol 2024:e17479. [PMID: 39036890 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2024] [Revised: 05/30/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024]
Abstract
Generalist plant-feeding insects are characterised by a broad host repertoire that can comprise several families or even different orders of plants. The genetic and physiological mechanisms underlying the use of such a wide host range are still not fully understood. Earlier studies indicate that the consumption of different host plants is associated with host-specific gene expression profiles. It remained, however, unclear if and how larvae can alter these profiles in the case of a changing host environment. Using the polyphagous comma butterfly (Polygonia c-album) we show that larvae can adjust their transcriptional profiles in response to a new host plant. The switch to some of the host plants, however, resulted in a larger transcriptional response and, thus, seems to be more challenging. At a physiological level, no correspondence for these patterns could be found in larval performance. This suggests that a high transcriptional but also phenotypic flexibility are essential for the use of a broad and diverse host range. We furthermore propose that host switch tests in the laboratory followed by transcriptomic investigations can be a valuable tool to examine not only plasticity in host use but also subtle and/or transient trade-offs in the evolution of host plant repertoires.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rachel A Steward
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- Biology Department, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Maria de la Paz Celorio-Mancera
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Ecology, Environment and Plant Science, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Niklas Janz
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Dick Moberg
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Sören Nylin
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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2
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Steward RA, Epanchin‐Niell RS, Boggs CL. Novel host unmasks heritable variation in plant preference within an insect population. Evolution 2022; 76:2634-2648. [PMID: 36111364 PMCID: PMC9827926 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2019] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Introductions of novel plant species can disturb the historical resource environment of herbivorous insects, resulting in strong selection to either adopt or exclude the novel host. However, an adaptive response depends on heritable genetic variation for preference or performance within the targeted herbivore population, and it is unclear how heritability of host-use preference may differ between novel and historical hosts. Pieris macdunnoughii butterflies in the Rocky Mountains lay eggs on the nonnative mustard Thlaspi arvense, which is lethal to their offspring. Heritability analyses revealed considerable sex-linked additive genetic variation in host preference within a population of this butterfly. This was contrary to general predictions about the genetic basis of preference variation, which are hypothesized to be sex linked between populations but autosomal within populations. Evidence of sex linkage disappeared when butterflies were tested on methanol-based chemical extracts, suggesting these chemicals in isolation may not be the primary driver of female choice among available host plants. Although unexpected, evidence for within-population sex-linked genetic variation in preference for T. arvense over native hosts indicates that persistent maladaptive oviposition on this lethal plant must be maintained by alternative evolutionary dynamics such as migration- or drift-selection balance or pleiotropic constraints.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel A. Steward
- Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of South CarolinaColumbiaSouth Carolina29208,Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColorado81224,Department of ZoologyStockholm UniversitySE‐10691StockholmSweden29208
| | - Rebecca S. Epanchin‐Niell
- Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColorado81224,College of Agriculture and Natural ResourcesUniversity of MarylandCollege ParkMaryland20742
| | - Carol L. Boggs
- Department of Biological SciencesUniversity of South CarolinaColumbiaSouth Carolina29208,Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColorado81224,School of the Earth, Ocean, and EnvironmentUniversity of South CarolinaColumbiaSouth Carolina29208
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3
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Jones LC, Rafter MA, Walter GH. Host interaction mechanisms in herbivorous insects – life cycles, host specialization and speciation. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blac070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Why are most herbivorous insects so specialized? How do generalists and specialists differ ecologically? And what sensory and cognitive processes determine which host species an insect recognizes and uses? We review sensory cues involved at different stages of interaction with host plants and outline a unified scheme of insect–host interaction mechanisms. Generalist species may be best understood as specialized organisms with a longer tail of secondary host species that they accept to a lessening extent. Secondary hosts have fewer attractive cues, and hence a lower probability of meeting the stimulation threshold required for egg laying. We then discuss the alternative theories of co-evolution and sequential evolution used to explain the diversification of insect herbivores. We conclude that ‘escape and radiate’ co-evolution rests on unrealistic assumptions and empirical evidence favours sequential evolution of plants and herbivores, and the unique life cycles of insect herbivores may sufficiently explain their extreme diversity within the animal kingdom. We also outline a new speciation-oriented hypothesis to explain why specialists are far more diverse than generalists. Generalists tend to have large, contiguous distributions and therefore lower speciation rates. Natural selection in novel environments may also result in narrowing of the host range more often than broadening, further increasing specialist diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lachlan C Jones
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland , St Lucia 4072, Brisbane, QLD , Australia
| | - Michelle A Rafter
- Health and Biosecurity, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Ecosciences Precinct , Dutton Park 4102, Brisbane, QLD , Australia
| | - Gimme H Walter
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland , St Lucia 4072, Brisbane, QLD , Australia
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4
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Evans BJE, O’Carroll DC, Fabian JM, Wiederman SD. Dragonfly Neurons Selectively Attend to Targets Within Natural Scenes. Front Cell Neurosci 2022; 16:857071. [PMID: 35450210 PMCID: PMC9017788 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2022.857071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Aerial predators, such as the dragonfly, determine the position and movement of their prey even when both are moving through complex, natural scenes. This task is likely supported by a group of neurons in the optic lobe which respond to moving targets that subtend less than a few degrees. These Small Target Motion Detector (STMD) neurons are tuned to both target size and velocity, whilst also exhibiting facilitated responses to targets traveling along continuous trajectories. When presented with a pair of targets, some STMDs generate spiking activity that represent a competitive selection of one target, as if the alternative does not exist (i.e., selective attention). Here, we describe intracellular responses of CSTMD1 (an identified STMD) to the visual presentation of targets embedded within cluttered, natural scenes. We examine CSTMD1 response changes to target contrast, as well as a range of target and background velocities. We find that background motion affects CSTMD1 responses via the competitive selection between features within the natural scene. Here, robust discrimination of our artificially embedded “target” is limited to scenarios when its velocity is matched to, or greater than, the background velocity. Additionally, the background’s direction of motion affects discriminability, though not in the manner observed in STMDs of other flying insects. Our results highlight that CSTMD1’s competitive responses are to those features best matched to the neuron’s underlying spatiotemporal tuning, whether from the embedded target or other features in the background clutter. In many scenarios, CSTMD1 responds robustly to targets moving through cluttered scenes. However, whether this neuronal system could underlie the task of competitively selecting slow moving prey against fast-moving backgrounds remains an open question.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard John Essex Evans
- School of Biomedicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
- *Correspondence: Bernard John Essex Evans
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5
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Lohse K, Wright C, Talavera G, García-Berro A. The genome sequence of the painted lady, Vanessa cardui Linnaeus 1758. Wellcome Open Res 2021; 6:324. [PMID: 37008186 PMCID: PMC10061037 DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.17358.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We present a genome assembly from an individual female Vanessa cardui (the painted lady; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Nymphalidae). The genome sequence is 425 megabases in span. The majority of the assembly is scaffolded into 32 chromosomal pseudomolecules, with the W and Z sex chromosome assembled. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl has identified 12,821 protein coding genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konrad Lohse
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edingburgh, UK
| | | | - Gerard Talavera
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB, CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Aurora García-Berro
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB, CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Darwin Tree of Life Barcoding collective
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edingburgh, UK
- Tree of Life, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB, CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Wellcome Sanger Institute Tree of Life programme
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edingburgh, UK
- Tree of Life, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB, CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Tree of Life Core Informatics collective
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edingburgh, UK
- Tree of Life, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
- Institut Botànic de Barcelona (IBB, CSIC-Ajuntament de Barcelona), Barcelona, Spain
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6
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Host Plant Constancy in Ovipositing Manduca sexta. J Chem Ecol 2021; 47:1042-1048. [PMID: 34546516 PMCID: PMC8642259 DOI: 10.1007/s10886-021-01309-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Revised: 08/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/26/2021] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Many pollinating insects exhibit flower constancy, i.e. they target flower species they have already experienced and fed from. While the insects might profit from reduced handling costs when revisiting similar flowers, flower constancy, in addition, is of benefit for the plants as it guarantees pollen transfer to conspecifics. Here we investigate whether the previous experience of an insect can also result in oviposition constancy, i.e. whether ovipositing on a given plant species will drive future oviposition preference in a female insect. We show that female hawkmoths (Manduca sexta), after having oviposited on a given plant species only once, indeed will prefer this plant in future oviposition choices. As oviposition preference is even affected 24 h after the moth has oviposited on a given plant, long term memory seems to be involved in this oviposition constancy. Our data furthermore suggest that, as shown for flower constancy, ovipositing moths increase their handling efficiency by targeting those host plants they have already experienced.
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7
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Zhang L, Steward RA, Wheat CW, Reed RD. High-Quality Genome Assembly and Comprehensive Transcriptome of the Painted Lady Butterfly Vanessa cardui. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab145. [PMID: 34282459 PMCID: PMC8290113 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The painted lady butterfly, Vanessa cardui, has the longest migration routes, the widest hostplant diversity, and one of the most complex wing patterns of any insect. Due to minimal culturing requirements, easily characterized wing pattern elements, and technical feasibility of CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing, V. cardui is emerging as a functional genomics model for diverse research programs. Here, we report a high-quality, annotated genome assembly of the V. cardui genome, generated using 84× coverage of PacBio long-read data, which we assembled into 205 contigs with a total length of 425.4 Mb (N50 = 10.3 Mb). The genome was very complete (single-copy complete Benchmarking Universal Single-Copy Orthologs [BUSCO] 97%), with contigs assembled into presumptive chromosomes using synteny analyses. Our annotation used embryonic, larval, and pupal transcriptomes, and 20 transcriptomes across five different wing developmental stages. Gene annotations showed a high level of accuracy and completeness, with 14,437 predicted protein-coding genes. This annotated genome assembly constitutes an important resource for diverse functional genomic studies ranging from the developmental genetic basis of butterfly color pattern, to coevolution with diverse hostplants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Zhang
- CAS and Shandong Province Key Laboratory of Experimental Marine Biology & Center of Deep Sea Research, Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao, China
- Laboratory for Marine Biology and Biotechnology, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
- College of Earth Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | | | | | - Robert D Reed
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
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8
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Celorio-Mancera MDLP, Rastas P, Steward RA, Nylin S, Wheat CW. Chromosome Level Assembly of the Comma Butterfly (Polygonia c-album). Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab054. [PMID: 33749729 PMCID: PMC8140205 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The comma butterfly (Polygonia c-album, Nymphalidae, Lepidoptera) is a model insect species, most notably in the study of phenotypic plasticity and plant-insect coevolutionary interactions. In order to facilitate the integration of genomic tools with a diverse body of ecological and evolutionary research, we assembled the genome of a Swedish comma using 10X sequencing, scaffolding with matepair data, genome polishing, and assignment to linkage groups using a high-density linkage map. The resulting genome is 373 Mb in size, with a scaffold N50 of 11.7 Mb and contig N50 of 11,2Mb. The genome contained 90.1% of single-copy Lepidopteran orthologs in a BUSCO analysis of 5,286 genes. A total of 21,004 gene-models were annotated on the genome using RNA-Seq data from larval and adult tissue in combination with proteins from the Arthropoda database, resulting in a high-quality annotation for which functional annotations were generated. We further documented the quality of the chromosomal assembly via synteny assessment with Melitaea cinxia. The resulting annotated, chromosome-level genome will provide an important resource for investigating coevolutionary dynamics and comparative analyses in Lepidoptera.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pasi Rastas
- Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Finland
| | - Rachel A Steward
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Stockholm University, Sweden
| | - Soren Nylin
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Stockholm University, Sweden
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9
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Winsor AM, Pagoti GF, Daye DJ, Cheries EW, Cave KR, Jakob EM. What gaze direction can tell us about cognitive processes in invertebrates. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2021; 564:43-54. [PMID: 33413978 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Most visually guided animals shift their gaze using body movements, eye movements, or both to gather information selectively from their environments. Psychological studies of eye movements have advanced our understanding of perceptual and cognitive processes that mediate visual attention in humans and other vertebrates. However, much less is known about how these processes operate in other organisms, particularly invertebrates. We here make the case that studies of invertebrate cognition can benefit by adding precise measures of gaze direction. To accomplish this, we briefly review the human visual attention literature and outline four research themes and several experimental paradigms that could be extended to invertebrates. We briefly review selected studies where the measurement of gaze direction in invertebrates has provided new insights, and we suggest future areas of exploration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex M Winsor
- Graduate Program in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
| | - Guilherme F Pagoti
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade de São Paulo, Rua do Matão, 321, Travessa 14, Cidade Universitária, São Paulo, SP, 05508-090, Brazil
| | - Daniel J Daye
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA; Graduate Program in Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, 02881, USA
| | - Erik W Cheries
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Kyle R Cave
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA
| | - Elizabeth M Jakob
- Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
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10
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Jones LC, Rafter MA, Walter GH. Host plant acceptance in a generalist insect: threshold, feedback or choice? BEHAVIOUR 2020. [DOI: 10.1163/1568539x-bja10041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Generalist insect herbivores feed mainly on one or more primary host species, but unlike specialists they also accept numerous secondary hosts. This raises the question of how generalists retain a broad host range yet allocate most of their eggs to primary hosts. We considered three possible explanations. (1) Threshold: secondary hosts are accepted less readily than primary hosts. (2) Feedback loop: insects ovipositing on primary hosts lay subsequent eggs faster than on secondary hosts. (3) Choice: insects compare plant cues sensed over a certain period and oviposit on preferred plants. We measured time and number of landings leading to egg-laying in a generalist moth, Helicoverpa punctigera, on a primary host and two secondary hosts and recorded subsequent egg-laying rates on each. The moths typically accepted only the primary host on the first landing and laid subsequent eggs on this host earlier in the night, indicating thresholds and feedback operate together.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lachlan C. Jones
- aSchool of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Michelle A. Rafter
- bHealth and Biosecurity, Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation, Ecosciences Precinct, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Gimme H. Walter
- aSchool of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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11
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Steward RA, Boggs CL. Experience may outweigh cue similarity in maintaining a persistent host‐plant‐based evolutionary trap. ECOL MONOGR 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/ecm.1412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rachel A. Steward
- Department of Biological Sciences University of South Carolina 715 Sumter Street Columbia South Carolina 29208 USA
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory PO Box 519 Crested Butte Colorado 81224 USA
| | - Carol L. Boggs
- Department of Biological Sciences University of South Carolina 715 Sumter Street Columbia South Carolina 29208 USA
- Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory PO Box 519 Crested Butte Colorado 81224 USA
- School of the Earth, Ocean, & Environment University of South Carolina 701 Sumter Street Columbia South Carolina 29208 USA
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