TY - JOUR A1 - Glaw, Frank A1 - Kohler, Jorn A1 - Hawlitschek, Oliver A1 - Ratsoavina, Fanomezana M. A1 - Rakotoarison, Andolalao A1 - Scherz, Mark D. A1 - Vences, Miguel T1 - Extreme miniaturization of a new amniote vertebrate and insights into the evolution of genital size in chameleons JF - Scientific reports N2 - Evolutionary reduction of adult body size (miniaturization) has profound consequences for organismal biology and is an important subject of evolutionary research. Based on two individuals we describe a new, extremely miniaturized chameleon, which may be the world's smallest reptile species. The male holotype of Brookesia nana sp. nov. has a snout-vent length of 13.5 mm (total length 21.6 mm) and has large, apparently fully developed hemipenes, making it apparently the smallest mature male amniote ever recorded. The female paratype measures 19.2 mm snout-vent length (total length 28.9 mm) and a micro-CT scan revealed developing eggs in the body cavity, likewise indicating sexual maturity. The new chameleon is only known from a degraded montane rainforest in northern Madagascar and might be threatened by extinction. Molecular phylogenetic analyses place it as sister to B. karchei, the largest species in the clade of miniaturized Brookesia species, for which we resurrect Evoluticauda Angel, 1942 as subgenus name. The genetic divergence of B. nana sp. nov. is rather strong (9.914.9% to all other Evoluticauda species in the 16S rRNA gene). A comparative study of genital length in Malagasy chameleons revealed a tendency for the smallest chameleons to have the relatively largest hemipenes, which might be a consequence of a reversed sexual size dimorphism with males substantially smaller than females in the smallest species. The miniaturized males may need larger hemipenes to enable a better mechanical fit with female genitals during copulation. Comprehensive studies of female genitalia are needed to test this hypothesis and to better understand the evolution of genitalia in reptiles. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-80955-1 SN - 2045-2322 VL - 11 IS - 1 PB - SPringer Nature CY - Berlin ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wicaksono, Wisnu Adi A1 - Egamberdieva, Dilfuza A1 - Berg, Christian A1 - Mora, Maximilian A1 - Kusstatscher, Peter A1 - Cernava, Tomislav A1 - Berg, Gabriele T1 - Function-based rhizosphere assembly along a gradient of desiccation in the former Aral Sea JF - mSystems N2 - The desiccation of the Aral Sea represents one of the largest human-made environmental regional disasters. The salt- and toxin-enriched dried-out basin provides a natural laboratory for studying ecosystem functioning and rhizosphere assembly under extreme anthropogenic conditions. Here, we investigated the prokaryotic rhizosphere communities of the native pioneer plant Suaeda acuminata (C.A.Mey.) Moq. in comparison to bulk soil across a gradient of desiccation (5, 10, and 40 years) by metagenome and amplicon sequencing combined with quantitative PCR (qPCR) analyses. The rhizosphere effect was evident due to significantly higher bacterial abundances but less diversity in the rhizosphere compared to bulk soil. Interestingly, in the highest salinity (5 years of desiccation), rhizosphere functions were mainly provided by archaeal communities. Along the desiccation gradient, we observed a significant change in the rhizosphere microbiota, which was reflected by (i) a decreasing archaeon-bacterium ratio, (ii) replacement of halophilic archaea by specific plant-associated bacteria, i.e., Alphaproteobacteria and Actinobacteria, and (iii) an adaptation of specific, potentially plant-beneficial biosynthetic pathways. In general, both bacteria and archaea were found to be involved in carbon cycling and fixation, as well as methane and nitrogen metabolism. Analysis of metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) showed specific signatures for production of osmoprotectants, assimilatory nitrate reduction, and transport system induction. Our results provide evidence that rhizosphere assembly by cofiltering specific taxa with distinct traits is a mechanism which allows plants to thrive under extreme conditions. Overall, our findings highlight a function-based rhizosphere assembly, the importance of plant-microbe interactions in salinated soils, and their exploitation potential for ecosystem restoration approaches.IMPORTANCE The desertification of the Aral Sea basin in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan represents one of the most serious anthropogenic environmental disasters of the last century. Since the 1960s, the world's fourth-largest inland body of water has been constantly shrinking, which has resulted in an extreme increase of salinity accompanied by accumulation of many hazardous and carcinogenic substances, as well as heavy metals, in the dried-out basin. Here, we investigated bacterial and archaeal communities in the rhizosphere of pioneer plants by combining classic molecular methods with amplicon sequencing as well as metagenomics for functional insights. By implementing a desiccation gradient, we observed (i) remarkable differences in the archaeon-bacterium ratio of plant rhizosphere samples, (ii) replacement of archaeal indicator taxa during succession, and (iii) the presence of specific, potentially plant-beneficial biosynthetic pathways in archaea present during the early stages. In addition, our results provide hitherto-undescribed insights into the functional redundancy between plant-associated archaea and bacteria. The desertification of the Aral Sea basin in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan represents one of the most serious anthropogenic environmental disasters of the last century. Since the 1960s, the world's fourth-largest inland body of water has been constantly shrinking, which has resulted in an extreme increase of salinity accompanied by accumulation of many hazardous and carcinogenic substances, as well as heavy metals, in the dried-out basin. KW - Aral Sea KW - microbiome KW - desiccation KW - nutrient cycling KW - soil microorganisms KW - revegetation KW - archaea KW - bacteria KW - metagenome Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.00739-22 SN - 2379-5077 VL - 7 IS - 6 PB - American Society for Microbiology CY - Washington, DC ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Obermann, Anne A1 - Sanchez-Pastor, Pilar A1 - Wu, Sin-Mei A1 - Wollin, Christopher A1 - Baird, Alan F. A1 - Isken, Marius Paul A1 - Clinton, John A1 - Goertz-Allmann, Bettina P. A1 - Dahm, Torsten A1 - Wüstefeld, Andreas A1 - Shi, Peidong A1 - Lanza, Federica A1 - Gyger, Lea A1 - Wetter, Selina A1 - Hjorleifsdottir, Vala A1 - Langet, Nadege A1 - Brynjarsson, Baldur A1 - Jousset, Philippe A1 - Wiemer, Stefan T1 - Combined large-N seismic arrays and DAS fiber optic cables across the Hengill geothermal field, Iceland JF - Seismological research letters N2 - From June to August 2021, we deployed a dense seismic nodal network across the Hengill geothermal area in southwest Iceland to image and characterize faults and high-temperature zones at high resolution. The nodal network comprised 498 geophone nodes spread across the northern Nesjavellir and southern Hverahlio geothermal fields and was complemented by an existing permanent and temporary backbone seismic network of a total of 44 short-period and broadband stations. In addition, we recorded distributed acoustic sensing data along two fiber optic telecommunication cables near the Nesjavellir geothermal power plant with commercial interrogators. During the time of deployment, a vibroseis survey took place around the Nesjavellir power plant. Here, we describe the network and the recorded datasets. Furthermore, we showsome initial results that indicate a high data quality and highlight the potential of the seismic records for various follow up studies, such as high-resolution event location to delineate faults and body- and surface-wave tomographies to image the subsurface velocity structure in great detail. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1785/0220220073 SN - 0895-0695 SN - 1938-2057 VL - 93 IS - 5 SP - 2498 EP - 2514 PB - Seismological Society of America CY - Boulder, Colo. ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Vyse, Stuart A. A1 - Herzschuh, Ulrike A1 - Pfalz, Gregor A1 - Pestryakova, Lyudmila A. A1 - Diekmann, Bernhard A1 - Nowaczyk, Norbert A1 - Biskaborn, Boris K. T1 - Sediment and carbon accumulation in a glacial lake in Chukotka (Arctic Siberia) during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene BT - combining hydroacoustic profiling and down-core analyses JF - Biogeosciences N2 - Lakes act as important sinks for inorganic and organic sediment components. However, investigations of sedimentary carbon budgets within glacial lakes are currently absent from Arctic Siberia. The aim of this paper is to provide the first reconstruction of accumulation rates, sediment and carbon budgets from a lacustrine sediment core from Lake Rauchuagytgyn, Chukotka (Arctic Siberia). We combined multiple sediment biogeochemical and sedimentological parameters from a radiocarbon-dated 6.5m sediment core with lake basin hydroacoustic data to derive sediment stratigraphy, sediment volumes and infill budgets. Our results distinguished three principal sediment and carbon accumulation regimes that could be identified across all measured environmental proxies including early Marine Isotope Stage 2 (MIS2) (ca. 29-23.4 ka cal BP), mid-MIS2-early MIS1 (ca. 23.4-11.69 ka cal BP) and the Holocene (ca. 11.69-present). Estimated organic carbon accumulation rates (OCARs) were higher within Holocene sediments (average 3.53 gOCm(-2) a(-1)) than Pleistocene sediments (average 1.08 gOCm(-2) a(-1)) and are similar to those calculated for boreal lakes from Quebec and Finland and Lake Baikal but significantly lower than Siberian thermokarst lakes and Alberta glacial lakes. Using a bootstrapping approach, we estimated the total organic carbon pool to be 0.26 +/- 0.02 Mt and a total sediment pool of 25.7 +/- 1.71 Mt within a hydroacoustically derived sediment volume of ca. 32 990 557m(3). The total organic carbon pool is substantially smaller than Alaskan yedoma, thermokarst lake sediments and Alberta glacial lakes but shares similarities with Finnish boreal lakes. Temporal variability in sediment and carbon accumulation dynamics at Lake Rauchuagytgyn is controlled predominantly by palaeoclimate variation that regulates lake ice-cover dynamics and catchment glacial, fluvial and permafrost processes through time. These processes, in turn, affect catchment and within-lake primary productivity as well as catchment soil development. Spatial differences compared to other lake systems at a trans-regional scale likely relate to the high-latitude, mountainous location of Lake Rauchuagytgyn. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4791-2021 SN - 1726-4170 SN - 1726-4189 VL - 18 IS - 16 SP - 4791 EP - 4816 PB - Copernicus CY - Göttingen ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Alemanno, Giulia A1 - D'Amore, Maddalena A1 - Maturilli, Alessandro A1 - Helbert, Joern A1 - Arnold, Gabriele A1 - Korablev, Oleg A1 - Ignatiev, Nikolay A1 - Grigoriev, Alexei A1 - Shakun, Alexey A1 - Trokhimovskiy, Alexander T1 - Martian atmospheric spectral end-members retrieval from ExoMars Thermal Infrared (TIRVIM) data JF - JGR / Planets N2 - Key knowledge about planetary composition can be recovered from the study of thermal infrared spectral range datasets. This range has a huge diagnostic potential because it contains diagnostic absorptions from a planetary surface and atmosphere. The main goal of this study is to process and interpret the dataset from the Thermal Infrared channel (TIRVIM) which is part of the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite of the ExoMars2016 Trace Gas Orbiter mission to find and characterize dust and water ice clouds in the atmosphere. The method employed here is based on the application of principal component analysis and target transformation techniques to extract the independent variable components present in the analyzed dataset. Spectral shapes of both atmospheric dust and water ice aerosols have been recovered from the analysis of TIRVIM data. The comparison between our results with those previously obtained on Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) data and with previous analysis on TIRVIM data, validates the methodology here applied, showing that it allows to correctly recover the atmospheric spectral endmembers present in the TIRVIM data. Moreover, comparison with atmospheric retrievals on PFS, TES and IRIS data, allowed us to assess the temporal stability and homogeneity of dust and water ice components in the Martian atmosphere over a time period of almost 50 years. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JE007429 SN - 2169-9097 SN - 2169-9100 VL - 127 IS - 9 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken, NJ ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sedaghatmehr, Mastoureh A1 - Stüwe, Benno A1 - Müller-Röber, Bernd A1 - Balazadeh, Salma T1 - Heat shock factor HSFA2 fine-tunes resetting of thermomemory via plastidic metalloprotease FtsH6 JF - Journal of experimental botany N2 - The transcription factor HSFA2 fine-tunes a balance between prolongation and resetting of thermomemory in Arabidopsis via the regulation of both memory-supporting and memory-resetting genes. Plants 'memorize' stressful events and protect themselves from future, often more severe, stresses. To maximize growth after stress, plants 'reset' or 'forget' memories of stressful situations, which requires an intricate balance between stress memory formation and the degree of forgetfulness. HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN 21 (HSP21) encodes a small heat shock protein in plastids of Arabidopsis thaliana. HSP21 functions as a key component of thermomemory, which requires a sustained elevated level of HSP21 during recovery from heat stress. A heat-induced metalloprotease, filamentation temperature-sensitive H6 (FtsH6), degrades HSP21 to its pre-stress abundance, thereby resetting memory during the recovery phase. The transcription factor heat shock factor A2 (HSFA2) activates downstream genes essential for mounting thermomemory, acting as a positive regulator in the process. Here, using a yeast one-hybrid screen, we identify HSFA2 as an upstream transactivator of the resetting element FtsH6. Constitutive and inducible overexpression of HSFA2 increases expression of FtsH6, whereas it is drastically reduced in the hsfa2 knockout mutant. Chromatin immunoprecipitation reveals in planta binding of HSFA2 to the FtsH6 promoter. Importantly, overexpression of HSFA2 improves thermomemory more profoundly in ftsh6 than wild-type plants. Thus, by activating both memory-supporting and memory-resetting genes, HSFA2 acts as a cellular homeostasis factor during thermomemory. KW - Arabidopsis thaliana KW - FtsH6 KW - heat stress KW - HSFA2 KW - HSP21 KW - thermomemory; KW - thermorecovery Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/erac257 SN - 0022-0957 SN - 1460-2431 VL - 73 IS - 18 SP - 6394 EP - 6404 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schachner, Maja K. A1 - Schwarzenthal, Miriam A1 - Moffitt, Ursula A1 - Civitillo, Sauro A1 - Juang, Linda T1 - Capturing a nuanced picture of classroom cultural diversity climate BT - multigroup and multilevel analyses among secondary school students in Germany JF - Contemporary educational psychology N2 - As cultural diversity is increasing around the globe, a more nuanced understanding of the cultural diversity climate in classroom settings is needed, including how its different aspects relate to student outcomes. We developed the Classroom Cultural Diversity Climate Scale (CCDCS), integrating theory and research from social psychology and multicultural education and including novel facets like polyculturalism, which has not been studied in the school context before. We then studied associations with intergroup relations, socio-emotional adjustment, and school achievement among students of immigrant and non-immigrant background at the individual and classroom levels. The scale includes six subscales in the two broad dimensions of equality and inclusion: contact and cooperation, (un)equal treatment, and color-evasion, and cultural pluralism: heritage and intercultural learning, critical consciousness, and polyculturalism. Using data from 1,335 secondary school students in Germany (Mage = 14.7; 51% male; 51% immigrant background), the scale demonstrated measurement invariance by immigrant background, gender, and school track, and reliability at individual and classroom levels. A more positive diversity climate, with better intercultural relations (equality and inclusion) and more opportunities to learn about cultural diversity (cultural pluralism), was associated with more positive student outcomes. Interestingly, polyculturalism was not associated with negative effects observed for other facets of cultural pluralism. Relations for different climate aspects also varied by outcome and students' immigrant background. This underscores the importance of a nuanced perspective when evaluating different approaches to cultural diversity in context. KW - classroom cultural diversity climate KW - diverse schools KW - multigroup KW - analyses KW - multilevel analyses KW - adolescents Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2021.101971 SN - 0361-476X SN - 1090-2384 VL - 65 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Jeitler, Michael A1 - Roth, Sandra A1 - Steckhan, Nico A1 - Meier, Larissa A1 - Koppold-Liebscher, Daniela A. A1 - Kandil, Farid A1 - Ostermann, Thomas A1 - Stange, Rainer A1 - Kessler, Christian S. A1 - Brinkhaus, Benno A1 - Michalsen, Andreas T1 - Therapeutic phlebotomy in patients with grade 1 hypertension: a randomized-controlled trial JF - Journal of integrative and complementary medicine N2 - Aim: Study aim was to investigate the effects of therapeutic phlebotomy on ambulatory blood pressure in patients with grade 1 hypertension. Methods: In this randomized-controlled intervention study, patients with unmedicated hypertension grade 1 were randomized into an intervention group (phlebotomy group; 500 mL bloodletting at baseline and after 6 weeks) and a control group (waiting list) and followed up for 8 weeks. Primary endpoint was the 24-h ambulatory mean arterial pressure between the intervention and control groups after 8 weeks. Secondary outcome parameters included ambulatory/resting systolic/diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and selected laboratory parameters (e.g., hemoglobin, hematocrit, erythrocytes, and ferritin). Resting systolic/diastolic blood pressure/heart rate and blood count were also assessed at 6 weeks before the second phlebotomy to ensure safety. A per-protocol analysis was performed. Results: Fifty-three hypertension participants (56.7 +/- 10.5 years) were included in the analysis (n = 25 intervention group, n = 28 control group). The ambulatory measured mean arterial pressure decreased by -1.12 +/- 5.16mmHg in the intervention group and increased by 0.43 +/- 3.82mmHg in the control group (between-group difference: -1.55 +/- 4.46, p = 0.22). Hemoglobin, hematocrit, erythrocytes, and ferritin showed more pronounced reductions in the intervention group in comparison with the control group, with significant between-group differences. Subgroup analysis showed trends regarding the effects on different groups classified by serum ferritin concentration, body mass index, age, and sex. Two adverse events (AEs) (anemia and dizziness) occurred in association with the phlebotomy, but no serious AEs. Conclusions: Study results showed that therapeutic phlebotomy resulted in only minimal reductions of 24-h ambulatory blood pressure measurement values in patients with unmedicated grade 1 hypertension. Further high-quality clinical studies are warranted, as this finding contradicts the results of other studies. KW - hypertension KW - phlebotomy KW - bloodletting KW - complementary medicine Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1089/jicm.2021.0396 SN - 2768-3605 SN - 2768-3613 VL - 28 IS - 6 SP - 530 EP - 539 PB - Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers CY - New Rochelle, NY ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Huelscher, Julian A1 - Sobel, Edward R. A1 - Verwater, Vincent A1 - Gross, Philip A1 - Chew, David A1 - Bernhardt, Anne T1 - Detrital apatite geochemistry and thermochronology from the Oligocene/Miocene Alpine foreland record the early exhumation of the Tauern Window JF - Basin research N2 - The early exhumation history of the Tauern Window in the European Eastern Alps and its surface expression is poorly dated and quantified, partly because thermochronological and provenance information are sparse from the Upper Austrian Northern Alpine Foreland Basin. For the first time, we combine a single-grain double-dating approach (Apatite Fission Track and U-Pb dating) with trace-element geochemistry analysis on the same apatites to reconstruct the provenance and exhumation history of the late Oligocene/early Miocene Eastern Alps. The results from 22 samples from the Chattian to Burdigalian sedimentary infill of the Upper Austrian Northern Alpine Foreland Basin were integrated with a 3D seismic-reflection data set and published stratigraphic reports. Our highly discriminative data set indicates an increasing proportion of apatites (from 6% to 23%) with Sr/Y values <0.1 up-section and an increasing amount of apatites (from 24% to 38%) containing >1,000 ppm light rare-earth elements from Chattian to Burdigalian time. The number of U-Pb ages with acceptable uncertainties increases from 40% to 59% up-section, with mostly late Variscan/Permian ages, while an increasing number of grains (10%-27%) have Eocene or younger apatite fission track cooling ages. The changes in the apatite trace-element geochemistry and U-Pb data mirror increased sediment input from an >= upper amphibolite-facies metamorphic source of late Variscan/Permian age - probably the otztal-Bundschuh nappe system - accompanied by increasing exhumation rates indicated by decreasing apatite fission track lag times. We attribute these changes to the surface response to upright folding and doming in the Penninic units of the future Tauern Window starting at 29-27 Ma. This early period of exhumation (0.3-0.6 mm/a) is triggered by early Adriatic indentation along the Giudicarie Fault System. KW - detrital apatite fission track analysis KW - detrital apatite trace-element KW - geochemistry KW - Molasse Basin KW - Northern Alpine Foreland Basin KW - Tauern KW - Window Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1111/bre.12593 SN - 0950-091X SN - 1365-2117 VL - 33 IS - 6 SP - 3021 EP - 3044 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Chen, Jialin A1 - Su, Yingna A1 - Liu, Rui A1 - Kliem, Bernhard A1 - Zhang, Qingmin A1 - Ji, Haisheng A1 - Liu, Tie T1 - Partial eruption, confinement, and twist buildup and release of a double-decker filament JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics. N2 - We investigate the failed partial eruption of a filament system in NOAA AR 12104 on 2014 July 5, using multiwavelength EUV, magnetogram, and H alpha observations, as well as magnetic field modeling. The filament system consists of two almost co-spatial segments with different end points, both resembling a C shape. Following an ejection and a precursor flare related to flux cancellation, only the upper segment rises and then displays a prominent twisted structure, while rolling over toward its footpoints. The lower segment remains undisturbed, indicating that the system possesses a double-decker structure. The erupted segment ends up with a reverse-C shape, with material draining toward its footpoints, while losing its twist. Using the flux rope insertion method, we construct a model of the source region that qualitatively reproduces key elements of the observed evolution. At the eruption onset, the model consists of a flux rope atop a flux bundle with negligible twist, which is consistent with the observational interpretation that the filament possesses a double-decker structure. The flux rope reaches the critical height of the torus instability during its initial relaxation, while the lower flux bundle remains in stable equilibrium. The eruption terminates when the flux rope reaches a dome-shaped quasi-separatrix layer that is reminiscent of a magnetic fan surface, although no magnetic null is found. The flux rope is destroyed by reconnection with the confining overlying flux above the dome, transferring its twist in the process. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac2ba1 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 923 IS - 2 PB - Institute of Physics Publ. CY - London ER -