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The minke whale is the last of the great whale species to be hunted in significant numbers. Effective management must include an understanding of how genetic diversity is divided and distributed among putative local populations, and as for many migratory species, this is complicated for the minke whale by large-scale seasonal movement among geographic regions. The problem is that the geographic identity of breeding populations is not known, and instead these whales are predictably found and hunted where different breeding stocks may mix on seasonal feeding grounds. Here we use microsatellite DNA and mtDNA markers to investigate minke whale population structure across the species' range in the North Atlantic. We found no evidence of geographic structure comparing putative populations in recognized management areas, although some limited structure had been indicated in earlier studies. However, using individual genotypes and likelihood assignment methods, we identified two putative cryptic stocks distributed across the North Atlantic in similar proportions in different regions. Some differences in the proportional representation of these populations may explain some of the apparent differentiation between regions detected previously. The implication would be that minke whales range extensively across the North Atlantic seasonally, but segregate to some extent on at least two breeding grounds. This means that established stock boundaries in the North Atlantic, currently used for management, should be re-considered to ensure the effective conservation of genetic diversity.

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Icelandic streams with mean annual temperatures of less than 5 ° C, which receive the cationic products of basaltic rock weathering, were found to host mats of iron-cycling microorganisms. We investigated two representative sites. Iron-oxidizing Gallionella and iron-reducing Geobacter species were present. The mats host a high bacterial diversity as determined by culture-independent methods. β-Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, α-Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes were abundant microbial taxa. The mat contained a high number of phototroph sequences. The carbon compounds in the mat displayed broad G and D bands with Raman spectroscopy. This signature becomes incorporated into the weathered oxidized surface layer of the basaltic rocks and was observed on rocks that no longer host mats. The presence of iron-oxidizing taxa in the stream microbial mats, and the lack of them in previously studied volcanic rocks in Iceland that have intermittently been exposed to surface water flows, can be explained by the kinetic limitations to the extraction of reduced iron from rocks . This type of ecosystem illustrates key factors that control the distribution of chemolithotrophs in cold volcanic environments. The data show that one promising sample type for which the hypothesis of the existence of past life on Mars can be tested is the surface of volcanic rocks that, previously, were situated within channels carved by flowing water. Our results also show that the carbonaceous signatures of life, if life had occurred, could be found in or on these rocks.

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Corn snack fortified with 7% fish protein powder made from saithe (Pollachius Virens) surimi was selected by expert panel from industry for consumer studies in Iran and Iceland. They hedonically screened products with 3%, 5%, 7% and 9% fish protein powder. Snack containing 9% fish protein powder (FP) had significantly lower liking for odor, texture, flavor, and overall acceptability than the other three prototypes. Snacks fortified with 3%, 5%, and 7% FP had similar sensory attributes. Therefore, snack with the highest level of FP (7%) was selected for acceptance tests. It was seasoned with cheese powder, vegetable oil, salt, and colorant. The amount of protein, moisture, fat, ash and salt in fortified corn snack (FCS) was 12%, 2%, 31%, 3%, and 2% respectively. Consumers' acceptance was studied using a central location test method. Consumers were 6–16 years old children in two communities (Iceland and Iran). They liked FCS but Iranian children favored it more than Icelandic children. Majority of parents of the participants expressed their willingness to choose this product when buying snacks.

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Bacteria inhabiting crystalline rocks from two terrestrial Icelandic volcanic lava flows of similar age and from the same geographical region, but differing in porosity and mineralogy, were characterized. Microarray (PhyloChip) and clone library analysis of 16S rRNA genes revealed the presence of a diverse assembly of bacteria in each lava flow. Both methods suggested a more diverse community at the Dómadalshraun site (rhyolitic / andesitic lava flow) than that present at the Hnausahraun site (basaltic lava flow). Proteobacteria dominated the clone library at the Dómadalshraun site, while Acidobacteria was the most abundant phylum in the Hnausahraun site. Although analysis of similarities of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis profiles suggested a strong correlation of community structure with mineralogy, rock porosity may also play an important role in shaping the bacterial community in crystalline volcanic rocks. Clone sequences were most similar to uncultured microorganisms, mainly from soil environments. Of these, Antarctic soils and temperate rhizosphere soils were prominent, as were clones retrieved from Hawaiian and Andean volcanic soils. The novel diversity of these Icelandic microbial communities was supported by the finding that up to 46% of clones displayed <85% sequence identities to sequences currently deposited in the RDP database.

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Aims: Campylobacter jejuni isolates from various sources in Iceland were genotyped with the aim of assessing the genetic diversity, population structure, source distribution and campylobacter transmission routes to humans.

Methods and Results: A collection of 584 Campylobacter isolates were collected from clinical cases, food, animals and environment in Iceland in 1999–2002, during a period of national Campylobacter epidemic in Iceland. All isolates were characterized by pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and selected subset of 52 isolates representing the diversity of the identified PFGE types was further genotyped using multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and fla-SVR sequencing to gain better insight into the population structure.

Conclusions: The results show a substantial diversity within the Icelandic Campylobacter population. Majority of the human Campylobacter infections originated from domestic chicken and cattle isolates. MLST showed the isolates to be distributed among previously reported and common sequence type complexes in the MLST database.

Significance and Impact of the Study: The genotyping of Campylobacter from various sources has not previously been reported from Iceland, and the results of the study gave a valuable insight into the population structure of Camp. jejuni in Iceland, source distribution and transmission routes to humans. The geographical isolation of Iceland in the north Atlantic provides new information on Campylobacter population dynamics on a global scale.

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