TY - JOUR A1 - Tofelde, Stefanie A1 - Bernhardt, Anne A1 - Guerit, Laure A1 - Romans, Brian W. T1 - Times Associated With Source-to-Sink Propagation of Environmental Signals During Landscape Transience JF - Frontiers in Earth Science N2 - Sediment archives in the terrestrial and marine realm are regularly analyzed to infer changes in climate, tectonic, or anthropogenic boundary conditions of the past. However, contradictory observations have been made regarding whether short period events are faithfully preserved in stratigraphic archives; for instance, in marine sediments offshore large river systems. On the one hand, short period events are hypothesized to be non-detectable in the signature of terrestrially derived sediments due to buffering during sediment transport along large river systems. On the other hand, several studies have detected signals of short period events in marine records offshore large river systems. We propose that this apparent discrepancy is related to the lack of a differentiation between different types of signals and the lack of distinction between river response times and signal propagation times. In this review, we (1) expand the definition of the term ‘signal’ and group signals in sub-categories related to hydraulic grain size characteristics, (2) clarify the different types of ‘times’ and suggest a precise and consistent terminology for future use, and (3) compile and discuss factors influencing the times of signal transfer along sediment routing systems and how those times vary with hydraulic grain size characteristics. Unraveling different types of signals and distinctive time periods related to signal propagation addresses the discrepancies mentioned above and allows a more comprehensive exploration of event preservation in stratigraphy – a prerequisite for reliable environmental reconstructions from terrestrially derived sedimentary records. KW - signal propagation KW - landscape transience KW - source-to-sink KW - stratigraphy KW - response time Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.628315 SN - 2296-6463 VL - 9 SP - 1 EP - 26 PB - Frontiers Media CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pillai, Stefanie A1 - Ong, Sue Lyn A1 - Ong, Duu Sheng A1 - Abdul Rahman, Mohd Basyaruddin T1 - Lessons Drawn from Evaluation and Implementation of the Malaysian Chapter of the International Deans’ Course JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - Deans at Institutions of Higher Education are seldom recipients of effective or specific professional management training, institutional mentorship, and coaching despite an increasing demand on them to play a more dynamic leadership role in the face of ever-changing local and global challenges. To address this deficiency, the inaugural Malaysian Chapter of the International Deans’ Course (MyIDC) was held in three parts over 2019 and 2020. In this paper, findings related to feedback on the programme are presented and discussed. Responses from the participants from two sets of surveys, and written feedback provided by two IDC international trainers involved in MyIDC were analysed. These reveal potential areas of improvement for the forthcoming MyIDC programme, such as in terms of planning and organisation, duration, content, and delivery. The article explores the lessons learnt from the MyIDC 2019/2020 training programme and discusses the improvements that can be made arising from the feedback received. KW - higher education KW - academic leadership Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493454 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 53 EP - 84 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Waswa, Fuchaka A1 - Abenga, Elizabeth A1 - Indede, Florence T1 - Enhancing Completion Rates through Structural and Operational Changes in the Management of Postgraduate Programmes in Kenya’s Public Universities JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - During the National Multiplication Training in Kenya in 2018, participants raised concerns about attrition, completion rates and quality of PhD programmes in Kenya’s public universities. This led the authors of this article to further examine the question of PhD completion rates. Available data underlined that PhD students across various disciplines in Kenya’s public universities take unnecessarily long to complete their studies due to a myriad of factors that are related to their supervisors, university guidelines for post-graduate studies, or the students themselves. This article examines inertia areas along the PhD training pathway at three public universities in Kenya and provides suggestions on structural and operational changes universities must make to shorten completion periods. KW - doctoral studies KW - completion rates KW - structural and operational changes KW - public universities in Kenya Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493468 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 85 EP - 101 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Echeverría King, Luisa Fernanda A1 - Acuña Paez, Katherine A1 - Coronado Vargas, Carlos T1 - Enhancing Internationalisation for Peacebuilding among Higher Education Institutions in Post-Conflict Colombia JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - This article collected the results of a qualitative study focused on Colombian Higher Education Institutions’ representatives partaking in the training ‘Internationalisation for Peacebuilding 2018’. The selected Higher Education Institutions and representatives were all located in regions acutely affected by the Colombian armed conflict, now experiencing multifaceted challenges and opportunities in a post-conflict scenario. Interviews with participants of the training were conducted to analyse the skills acquired and to identify possible improvements brought about by the training at the institutions. The article further identifies specific needs of the institutions, to be taken into account for future courses on internationalisation for higher education institutions. KW - internationalisation for higher education KW - capacity building KW - international cooperation KW - peacebuilding KW - quality in higher education Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493500 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 103 EP - 121 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Cheng, Ming Yu A1 - Ong, Duu Sheng A1 - Mustafa, Marzuki A1 - Ewe, Hong Tat T1 - Leadership Training in Malaysia BT - Impact and Implications JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - The higher education structure in Malaysia has experienced significant changes since the implementation of the Private Higher Educational Institutions Act of 1996. The unprecedented expansion of the higher education sector and the increasing autonomy conferred to universities have created a huge demand for competent university leadership that supports the development of higher education in Malaysia. This article discusses the very first national multiplication training in Malaysia in 2014 and analyses such out-comes as the identification of good practices for future initiatives and applications in university leadership training. KW - university leadership in Malaysia KW - higher education KW - university management KW - training programme Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493444 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 37 EP - 51 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Musa Alokpo, Dieudonné T1 - Implementation of a Proposal Writing Workshop in the Democratic Republic of Congo BT - Challenges, Approaches, and Learning Outcomes of the Participants JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - Whilst providing a framework for learning and scientific emancipation, a proposal writing training is confronted with various organisational and didactic challenges, which influence the achievement of the set training objectives. Based on observations made during the workshops for proposal writing organised in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, as part of the NMT Programme, the article raises two main questions: (a) How could these challenges be overcome and successfully addressed in the training? (b) What is the level of learning outcomes of the participants at the end of the training? The article shows that the success of the training lays in the relevance of the employed training approaches. The use of a participatory approach encouraged constructive exchanges between participants, trainers, and experts, and enabled all participants to finalise coherent projects to apply for national and international funding. KW - proposal writing KW - participatory didactics KW - national multiplication training Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493873 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 145 EP - 165 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mawa, Michael T1 - The Sustainability Mechanisms for Higher Education Quality Assurance Training in Uganda JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - The paper investigates the question of sustainability of capacity building initiatives by reporting about the multiplication training in the frame of DIES NMT Programme on quality assurance in Uganda and how it could make use of the social capital within the existing quality assurance network to sustain and address challenges during its implementation. The purpose of the article is to explore the nature of networking (social and institutional) which was established by the Ugandan Universities Quality Assurance Forum (UUQAF) and share the strategies used in this training experience for future sustainable capacity building training initiatives in emerging economies. The paper employed a qualitative research method to describe and analyse the training framework based on primary and secondary documents. KW - social network KW - social capital KW - quality assurance KW - training for sustainability KW - benchmarking Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493931 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 205 EP - 223 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Oulare, Kabiné A1 - Randhahn, Solveig T1 - Quality Assurance in Guinean Higher Education Institutions BT - State of Play, Development and Perspectives JF - Potsdamer Beiträge zur Hochschulforschung N2 - Higher education institutions in Guinea face many challenges, including reporting responsibilities, globalisation, and massification. Institutional evaluations of higher education and research institutions in 2013 could not initiate the implementation of change processes within the institutions. Recently, however, various initiatives have been started to change this situation with the purpose to sensitise and raise awareness and capabilities for quality assurance structures in Guinean HEIs. So far, the emphasis has been put on quality enhancement in higher education, especially on teaching evaluation, curriculum development, as well as on establishing quality assurance structures. This article gives an overview of the state of play and takes stock of the activities that have been initiated to set up quality assurance mechanisms in higher education and research institutions, and presents perspectives for further development of the quality approach in Guinea. The project ‘Quality Assurance Multiplication 2017-2018’ serves as an example to describe approaches and activities in setting up stable quality assurance structures, and to strengthen and raise awareness for a ‘quality culture’. KW - quality assurance in Guinean higher education KW - national quality assurance agency in Guinea KW - quality assurance structures KW - quality evaluation KW - quality culture Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-493917 SN - 978-3-86956-496-8 SN - 2192-1075 SN - 2192-1083 IS - 5 SP - 187 EP - 204 PB - Universitätsverlag Potsdam CY - Potsdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wright, Michelle F. A1 - Wachs, Sebastian A1 - Huang, Zheng T1 - Adolescents’ Popularity-Motivated Aggression and Prosocial Behaviors: The Roles of Callous-Unemotional Traits and Social Status Insecurity JF - Frontiers in Psychology N2 - As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers (i.e., social status insecurity). These adolescents sometimes use aggression to defend or promote their status. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among social status insecurity, callous-unemotional (CU) traits, and popularity-motivated aggression and prosocial behaviors among adolescents, while controlling for gender. Another purpose was to examine the potential moderating role of CU traits in these relationships. Participants were 1,047 (49.2% girls; Mage = 12.44 years; age range from 11 to 14 years) in the 7th or 8th grades from a large Midwestern city. They completed questionnaires on social status insecurity, CU traits, and popularity-motivated relational aggression, physical aggression, cyberaggression, and prosocial behaviors. A structural regression model was conducted, with gender as a covariate. The model had adequate fit. Social status insecurity was associated positively with callousness, unemotional, and popularity-motivated aggression and related negatively to popularity-motivated prosocial behaviors. High social status insecurity was related to greater popularity-motivated aggression when adolescents had high callousness traits. The findings have implications for understanding the individual characteristics associated with social status insecurity. KW - social status insecurity KW - callousness KW - unemotional KW - uncaring KW - callous-unemotional traits KW - aggression KW - cyberaggression KW - prosocial Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.606865 SN - 1664-1078 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - Frontiers CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Granacher, Urs A1 - Nobari, Hadi A1 - Ruivo Alves, Ana A1 - Clemente, Filipe Manuel A1 - Pérez-Gómez, Jorge A1 - Clark, Cain Craig Truman A1 - Zouhal, Hassane T1 - Associations Between Variations in Accumulated Workload and Physiological Variables in Young Male Soccer Players Over the Course of a Season JF - Frontiers in physiology N2 - This study sought to analyze the relationship between in-season training workload with changes in aerobic power (VO2max), maximum and resting heart rate (HRmax and HRrest), linear sprint medium (LSM), and short test (LSS), in soccer players younger than 16 years (under-16 soccer players). We additionally aimed to explain changes in fitness levels during the in-season through regression models, considering accumulated load, baseline levels, and peak height velocity (PHV) as predictors. Twenty-three male sub-elite soccer players aged 15.5 ± 0.2 years (PHV: 13.6 ± 0.4 years; body height: 172.7 ± 4.2 cm; body mass: 61.3 ± 5.6 kg; body fat: 13.7% ± 3.9%; VO2max: 48.4 ± 2.6 mL⋅kg–1⋅min–1), were tested three times across the season (i.e., early-season (EaS), mid-season (MiS), and end-season (EnS) for VO2max, HRmax, LSM, and LSS. Aerobic and speed variables gradually improved over the season and had a strong association with PHV. Moreover, the HRmax demonstrated improvements from EaS to EnS; however, this was more evident in the intermediate period (from EaS to MiS) and had a strong association with VO2max. Regression analysis showed significant predictions for VO2max [F(2, 20) = 8.18, p ≤ 0.001] with an R2 of 0.45. In conclusion, the meaningful variation of youth players’ fitness levels can be observed across the season, and such changes can be partially explained by the load imposed. KW - internal load KW - heart rate KW - linear sprint KW - aerobic power KW - football Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2021.638180 SN - 1664-042X VL - 12 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Frontiers Research Foundation CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wippert, Pia-Maria A1 - Niederer, Daniel A1 - Drießlein, David A1 - Beck, Heidrun A1 - Banzer, Winfried Eberhard A1 - Schneider, Christian A1 - Schiltenwolf, Marcus A1 - Mayer, Frank T1 - Psychosocial Moderators and Mediators of Sensorimotor Exercise in Low Back Pain: A Randomized Multicenter Controlled Trial JF - Frontiers in Psychiatry N2 - The effects of exercise interventions on unspecific chronic low back pain (CLBP) have been investigated in many studies, but the results are inconclusive regarding exercise types, efficiency, and sustainability. This may be because the influence of psychosocial factors on exercise induced adaptation regarding CLBP is neglected. Therefore, this study assessed psychosocial characteristics, which moderate and mediate the effects of sensorimotor exercise on LBP. A single-blind 3-arm multicenter randomized controlled trial was conducted for 12-weeks. Three exercise groups, sensorimotor exercise (SMT), sensorimotor and behavioral training (SMT-BT), and regular routines (CG) were randomly assigned to 662 volunteers. Primary outcomes (pain intensity and disability) and psychosocial characteristics were assessed at baseline (M1) and follow-up (3/6/12/24 weeks, M2-M5). Multiple regression models were used to analyze whether psychosocial characteristics are moderators of the relationship between exercise and pain, meaning that psychosocial factors and exercise interact. Causal mediation analysis were conducted to analyze, whether psychosocial characteristics mediate the exercise effect on pain. A total of 453 participants with intermittent pain (mean age = 39.5 ± 12.2 years, f = 62%) completed the training. It was shown, that depressive symptomatology (at M4, M5), vital exhaustion (at M4), and perceived social support (at M5) are significant moderators of the relationship between exercise and the reduction of pain intensity. Further depressive mood (at M4), social-satisfaction (at M4), and anxiety (at M5 SMT) significantly moderate the exercise effect on pain disability. The amount of moderation was of clinical relevance. In contrast, there were no psychosocial variables which mediated exercise effects on pain. In conclusion it was shown, that psychosocial variables can be moderators in the relationship between sensorimotor exercise induced adaptation on CLBP which may explain conflicting results in the past regarding the merit of exercise interventions in CLBP. Results suggest further an early identification of psychosocial risk factors by diagnostic tools, which may essential support the planning of personalized exercise therapy. Level of Evidence: Level I. Clinical Trial Registration: DRKS00004977, LOE: I, MiSpEx: grant-number: 080102A/11-14. https://www.drks.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=trial.HTML&TRIAL_ID=DRKS00004977. KW - low-back-pain KW - motor-control-exercise KW - multidisciplinary-therapy KW - MiSpEx-network KW - yellow flags Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.629474 SN - 1664-0640 VL - 12 SP - 1 EP - 16 PB - Frontiers Research Foundation CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Risch, Lucie A1 - Stoll, Josefine A1 - Schomöller, Anne A1 - Engel, Tilman A1 - Mayer, Frank A1 - Cassel, Michael T1 - Intraindividual Doppler Flow Response to Exercise Differs Between Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Achilles Tendons JF - Frontiers in physiology N2 - Objective: This study investigated intraindividual differences of intratendinous blood flow (IBF) in response to running exercise in participants with Achilles tendinopathy. Design: This is a cross-sectional study. Setting: The study was conducted at the University Outpatient Clinic. Participants: Sonographic detectable intratendinous blood flow was examined in symptomatic and contralateral asymptomatic Achilles tendons of 19 participants (42 ± 13 years, 178 ± 10 cm, 76 ± 12 kg, VISA-A 75 ± 16) with clinically diagnosed unilateral Achilles tendinopathy and sonographic evident tendinosis. Intervention: IBF was assessed using Doppler ultrasound “Advanced Dynamic Flow” before (Upre) and 5, 30, 60, and 120 min (U5–U120) after a standardized submaximal constant load run. Main Outcome Measure: IBF was quantified by counting the number (n) of vessels in each tendon. Results: At Upre, IBF was higher in symptomatic compared with asymptomatic tendons [mean 6.3 (95% CI: 2.8–9.9) and 1.7 (0.4–2.9), p < 0.01]. Overall, 63% of symptomatic and 47% of asymptomatic Achilles tendons responded to exercise, whereas 16 and 11% showed persisting IBF and 21 and 42% remained avascular throughout the investigation. At U5, IBF increased in both symptomatic and asymptomatic tendons [difference to baseline: 2.4 (0.3–4.5) and 0.9 (0.5–1.4), p = 0.05]. At U30 to U120, IBF was still increased in symptomatic but not in asymptomatic tendons [mean difference to baseline: 1.9 (0.8–2.9) and 0.1 (-0.9 to 1.2), p < 0.01]. Conclusion: Irrespective of pathology, 47–63% of Achilles tendons responded to exercise with an immediate acute physiological IBF increase by an average of one to two vessels (“responders”). A higher amount of baseline IBF (approximately five vessels) and a prolonged exercise-induced IBF response found in symptomatic ATs indicate a pain-associated altered intratendinous “neovascularization.” KW - achilles tendinopathy KW - tendinosis KW - neovascularization KW - ultrasound KW - advanced dynamic flow KW - sonography Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2021.617497 SN - 1664-042X VL - 12 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - Frontiers Research Foundation CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kühne, Franziska A1 - Fauth, Henriette A1 - Destina Sevde, Ay-Bryson A1 - Visser, Leonie N.C. A1 - Weck, Florian T1 - Communicating the diagnosis of cancer or depression: Results of a randomized controlled online study using video vignettes JF - Cancer Medicine N2 - Background Communicating a diagnosis is highly important, yet complex, especially in the context of cancer and mental disorders. The aim was to explore the communication style of an oncologist vs. psychotherapist in an online study. Methods Patients (N = 136: 65 cancer, 71 depression) were randomly assigned to watch a standardized video vignette with one of two communication styles (empathic vs. unempathic). Outcome measures of affectivity, information recall, communication skills, empathy and trust were applied. Results Regardless of diagnosis, empathic communication was associated with the perception of a significantly more empathic (p < 0.001, η2partial = 0.08) and trustworthy practitioner (p = 0.014, η2partial = 0.04) with better communication skills (p = 0.013, η2partial = 0.05). Cancer patients reported a larger decrease in positive affect (p < 0.001, η2partial = 0.15) and a larger increase in negative affect (p < 0.001, η2partial = 0.14) from pre- to post-video than depressive patients. Highly relevant information was recalled better in both groups (p < 0.001, d = 0.61–1.06). Conclusions The results highlight the importance of empathy while communicating both a diagnosis of cancer and a mental disorder. Further research should focus on the communication of a mental disorder in association with cancer. KW - consultation KW - mental health KW - oncology KW - psycho-oncology KW - skills Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/cam4.4396 SN - 2045-7634 VL - 10 SP - 9012 EP - 9021 PB - Wiley CY - Hoboken, New Jersey, USA ET - 24 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rose, Robert A1 - Groeger, Lars A1 - Hölzle, Katharina T1 - The Emergence of Shared Leadership in Innovation Labs JF - Frontiers in Psychology N2 - Implementing innovation laboratories to leverage intrapreneurship are an increasingly popular organizational practice. A typical feature in these creative environments are semi-autonomous teams in which multiple members collectively exert leadership influence, thereby challenging traditional command-and-control conceptions of leadership. An extensive body of research on the team-centric concept of shared leadership has recognized the potential for pluralized leadership structures in enhancing team effectiveness; however, little empirical work has been conducted in organizational contexts in which creativity is key. This study set out to explore antecedents of shared leadership and its influence on team creativity in an innovation lab. Building on extant shared leadership and innovation research, we propose antecedents customary to creative teamwork, that is, experimental culture, task reflexivity, and voice. Multisource data were collected from 104 team members and 49 evaluations of 29 coaches nested in 21 teams working in a prototypical innovation lab. We identify factors specific to creative teamwork that facilitate the emergence of shared leadership by providing room for experimentation, encouraging team members to speak up in the creative process, and cultivating a reflective application of entrepreneurial thinking. We provide specific exemplary activities for innovation lab teams to increase levels of shared leadership. KW - innovation laboratories KW - intrapreneurship KW - team creativity KW - shared leadership KW - social network analysis Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.685167 SN - 1664-1078 VL - 12 SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - Frontiers in psychology CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Spikes, Montrai A1 - Rodríguez-Silva, Rodet A1 - Bennett, Kerri-Ann A1 - Bräger, Stefan A1 - Josaphat, James A1 - Torres-Pineda, Patricia A1 - Ernst, Anja A1 - Havenstein, Katja A1 - Schlupp, Ingo A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - A phylogeny of the genus Limia (Teleostei: Poeciliidae) suggests a single-lake radiation nested in a Caribbean-wide allopatric speciation scenario JF - BMC Research Notes N2 - Objective The Caribbean is an important global biodiversity hotspot. Adaptive radiations there lead to many speciation events within a limited period and hence are particularly prominent biodiversity generators. A prime example are freshwater fish of the genus Limia, endemic to the Greater Antilles. Within Hispaniola, nine species have been described from a single isolated site, Lake Miragoâne, pointing towards extraordinary sympatric speciation. This study examines the evolutionary history of the Limia species in Lake Miragoâne, relative to their congeners throughout the Caribbean. Results For 12 Limia species, we obtained almost complete sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene, a well-established marker for lower-level taxonomic relationships. We included sequences of six further Limia species from GenBank (total N  = 18 species). Our phylogenies are in concordance with other published phylogenies of Limia. There is strong support that the species found in Lake Miragoâne in Haiti are monophyletic, confirming a recent local radiation. Within Lake Miragoâne, speciation is likely extremely recent, leading to incomplete lineage sorting in the mtDNA. Future studies using multiple unlinked genetic markers are needed to disentangle the relationships within the Lake Miragoâne clade. KW - Cytochrome b KW - Island biogeography KW - Fresh water fish KW - Phylogeny Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-021-05843-x SN - 1756-0500 VL - 14 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - BMC Research Notes / Biomed Central CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Krüger, Johanna A1 - Foerster, Verena Elisabeth A1 - Trauth, Martin H. A1 - Hofreiter, Michael A1 - Tiedemann, Ralph T1 - Exploring the Past Biosphere of Chew Bahir/Southern Ethiopia: Cross-Species Hybridization Capture of Ancient Sedimentary DNA from a Deep Drill Core JF - Frontiers in Earth Science N2 - Eastern Africa has been a prime target for scientific drilling because it is rich in key paleoanthropological sites as well as in paleolakes, containing valuable paleoclimatic information on evolutionary time scales. The Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP) explores these paleolakes with the aim of reconstructing environmental conditions around critical episodes of hominin evolution. Identification of biological taxa based on their sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) traces can contribute to understand past ecological and climatological conditions of the living environment of our ancestors. However, sedaDNA recovery from tropical environments is challenging because high temperatures, UV irradiation, and desiccation result in highly degraded DNA. Consequently, most of the DNA fragments in tropical sediments are too short for PCR amplification. We analyzed sedaDNA in the upper 70 m of the composite sediment core of the HSPDP drill site at Chew Bahir for eukaryotic remnants. We first tested shotgun high throughput sequencing which leads to metagenomes dominated by bacterial DNA of the deep biosphere, while only a small fraction was derived from eukaryotic, and thus probably ancient, DNA. Subsequently, we performed cross-species hybridization capture of sedaDNA to enrich ancient DNA (aDNA) from eukaryotic remnants for paleoenvironmental analysis, using established barcoding genes (cox1 and rbcL for animals and plants, respectively) from 199 species that may have had relatives in the past biosphere at Chew Bahir. Metagenomes yielded after hybridization capture are richer in reads with similarity to cox1 and rbcL in comparison to metagenomes without prior hybridization capture. Taxonomic assignments of the reads from these hybridization capture metagenomes also yielded larger fractions of the eukaryotic domain. For reads assigned to cox1, inferred wet periods were associated with high inferred relative abundances of putative limnic organisms (gastropods, green algae), while inferred dry periods showed increased relative abundances for insects. These findings indicate that cross-species hybridization capture can be an effective approach to enhance the information content of sedaDNA in order to explore biosphere changes associated with past environmental conditions, enabling such analyses even under tropical conditions. KW - Chew Bahir KW - hybridization capture KW - ICDP KW - paleoclimate KW - past biosphere KW - sedaDNA KW - sediment core Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.683010 SN - 2296-6463 SP - 1 EP - 20 PB - Frontiers in Earth Science CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kaboth-Bahr, Stefanie A1 - Bahr, André A1 - Stepanek, Christian A1 - Catunda, Maria Carolina Amorim A1 - Karas, Cyrus A1 - Ziegler, Martin A1 - García-Gallardo, Ángela A1 - Grunert, Patrick T1 - Mediterranean heat injection to the North Atlantic delayed the intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciations JF - Communications Earth & Environment N2 - The intensification of Northern Hemisphere glaciations at the end of the Pliocene epoch marks one of the most substantial climatic shifts of the Cenozoic. Despite global cooling, sea surface temperatures in the high latitude North Atlantic Ocean rose between 2.9–2.7 million years ago. Here we present sedimentary geochemical proxy data from the Gulf of Cadiz to reconstruct the variability of Mediterranean Outflow Water, an important heat source to the North Atlantic. We find evidence for enhanced production of Mediterranean Outflow from the mid-Pliocene to the late Pliocene which we infer could have driven a sub-surface heat channel into the high-latitude North Atlantic. We then use Earth System Models to constrain the impact of enhanced Mediterranean Outflow production on the northward heat transport in the North Atlantic. In accord with the proxy data, the numerical model results support the formation of a sub-surface channel that pumped heat from the subtropics into the high latitude North Atlantic. We further suggest that this mechanism could have delayed ice sheet growth at the end of the Pliocene. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-021-00232-5 SN - 2662-4435 SP - 1 EP - 9 PB - Springer Nature CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - de Pinho Tavares Leal, Pedro Ernesto A1 - da Silva, Alexandre Alves A1 - Rocha-Gomes, Arthur A1 - Riul, Tania Regina A1 - Cunha, Rennan Augusto A1 - Reichetzeder, Christoph A1 - Villela, Daniel Campos T1 - High-Salt Diet in the Pre- and Postweaning Periods Leads to Amygdala Oxidative Stress and Changes in Locomotion and Anxiety-Like Behaviors of Male Wistar Rats JF - Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience N2 - High-salt (HS) diets have recently been linked to oxidative stress in the brain, a fact that may be a precursor to behavioral changes, such as those involving anxiety-like behavior. However, to the best of our knowledge, no study has evaluated the amygdala redox status after consuming a HS diet in the pre- or postweaning periods. This study aimed to evaluate the amygdala redox status and anxiety-like behaviors in adulthood, after inclusion of HS diet in two periods: preconception, gestation, and lactation (preweaning); and only after weaning (postweaning). Initially, 18 females and 9 male Wistar rats received a standard (n = 9 females and 4 males) or a HS diet (n = 9 females and 5 males) for 120 days. After mating, females continued to receive the aforementioned diets during gestation and lactation. Weaning occurred at 21-day-old Wistar rats and the male offspring were subdivided: control-control (C-C)—offspring of standard diet fed dams who received a standard diet after weaning (n = 9–11), control-HS (C-HS)—offspring of standard diet fed dams who received a HS diet after weaning (n = 9–11), HS-C—offspring of HS diet fed dams who received a standard diet after weaning (n = 9–11), and HS-HS—offspring of HS diet fed dams who received a HS diet after weaning (n = 9–11). At adulthood, the male offspring performed the elevated plus maze and open field tests. At 152-day-old Wistar rats, the offspring were euthanized and the amygdala was removed for redox state analysis. The HS-HS group showed higher locomotion and rearing frequency in the open field test. These results indicate that this group developed hyperactivity. The C-HS group had a higher ratio of entries and time spent in the open arms of the elevated plus maze test in addition to a higher head-dipping frequency. These results suggest less anxiety-like behaviors. In the analysis of the redox state, less activity of antioxidant enzymes and higher levels of the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in the amygdala were shown in the amygdala of animals that received a high-salt diet regardless of the period (pre- or postweaning). In conclusion, the high-salt diet promoted hyperactivity when administered in the pre- and postweaning periods. In animals that received only in the postweaning period, the addition of salt induced a reduction in anxiety-like behaviors. Also, regardless of the period, salt provided amygdala oxidative stress, which may be linked to the observed behaviors. KW - high-sodium KW - open-field KW - elevated plus-maze KW - pre-natal KW - post-natal KW - redox state Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2021.779080 SN - 1662-5153 VL - 15 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Frontiers Research Foundation CY - Lausanne, Schweiz ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Vogel, Johannes A1 - Paton, Eva Nora A1 - Aich, Valentin T1 - Seasonal ecosystem vulnerability to climatic anomalies in the Mediterranean JF - Biogeosciences N2 - Mediterranean ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to climate change and the associated increase in climate anomalies. This study investigates extreme ecosystem responses evoked by climatic drivers in the Mediterranean Basin for the time span 1999–2019 with a specific focus on seasonal variations as the seasonal timing of climatic anomalies is considered essential for impact and vulnerability assessment. A bivariate vulnerability analysis is performed for each month of the year to quantify which combinations of the drivers temperature (obtained from ERA5-Land) and soil moisture (obtained from ESA CCI and ERA5-Land) lead to extreme reductions in ecosystem productivity using the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (FAPAR; obtained from the Copernicus Global Land Service) as a proxy. The bivariate analysis clearly showed that, in many cases, it is not just one but a combination of both drivers that causes ecosystem vulnerability. The overall pattern shows that Mediterranean ecosystems are prone to three soil moisture regimes during the yearly cycle: they are vulnerable to hot and dry conditions from May to July, to cold and dry conditions from August to October, and to cold conditions from November to April, illustrating the shift from a soil-moisture-limited regime in summer to an energy-limited regime in winter. In late spring, a month with significant vulnerability to hot conditions only often precedes the next stage of vulnerability to both hot and dry conditions, suggesting that high temperatures lead to critically low soil moisture levels with a certain time lag. In the eastern Mediterranean, the period of vulnerability to hot and dry conditions within the year is much longer than in the western Mediterranean. Our results show that it is crucial to account for both spatial and temporal variability to adequately assess ecosystem vulnerability. The seasonal vulnerability approach presented in this study helps to provide detailed insights regarding the specific phenological stage of the year in which ecosystem vulnerability to a certain climatic condition occurs. How to cite. Vogel, J., Paton, E., and Aich, V.: Seasonal ecosystem vulnerability to climatic anomalies in the Mediterranean, Biogeosciences, 18, 5903–5927, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5903-2021, 2021. Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5903-2021 SN - 1726-4189 VL - 18 SP - 5903 EP - 5927 PB - Copernicus CY - Göttingen ET - 22 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Baritello, Omar A1 - Salzwedel, Annett A1 - Sündermann, Simon A1 - Niebauer, Josef A1 - Völler, Heinz T1 - The Pandora's Box of frailty assessments: Which is the best for clinical purposes in TAVI patients? A critical review JF - Journal of Clinical Medicine N2 - Frailty assessment is recommended before elective transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) to determine post-interventional prognosis. Several studies have investigated frailty in TAVI-patients using numerous assessments; however, it remains unclear which is the most appropriate tool for clinical practice. Therefore, we evaluate which frailty assessment is mainly used and meaningful for ≤30-day and ≥1-year prognosis in TAVI patients. Randomized controlled or observational studies (prospective/retrospective) investigating all-cause mortality in older (≥70 years) TAVI patients were identified (PubMed; May 2020). In total, 79 studies investigating frailty with 49 different assessments were included. As single markers of frailty, mostly gait speed (23 studies) and serum albumin (16 studies) were used. Higher risk of 1-year mortality was predicted by slower gait speed (highest Hazard Ratios (HR): 14.71; 95% confidence interval (CI) 6.50–33.30) and lower serum albumin level (highest HR: 3.12; 95% CI 1.80–5.42). Composite indices (five items; seven studies) were associated with 30-day (highest Odds Ratio (OR): 15.30; 95% CI 2.71–86.10) and 1-year mortality (highest OR: 2.75; 95% CI 1.55–4.87). In conclusion, single markers of frailty, in particular gait speed, were widely used to predict 1-year mortality. Composite indices were appropriate, as well as a comprehensive assessment of frailty. View Full-Text KW - frailty tool KW - TAVI KW - older patients KW - elderly KW - cardiology KW - mortality Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm10194506 SN - 2077-0383 VL - 10 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - MDPI CY - Basel, Schweiz ET - 19 ER -