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During the earliest Triassic microbial mats flourished in the photic zones of marginal seas, generating widespread microbialites. It has been suggested that anoxic conditions in shallow marine environments, linked to the end-Permian mass extinction, limited mat-inhibiting metazoans allowing for this microbialite expansion. The presence of a diverse suite of proxies indicating oxygenated shallow sea-water conditions (metazoan fossils, biomarkers and redox proxies) from microbialite successions have, however, challenged the inference of anoxic conditions. Here, the distribution and faunal composition of Griesbachian microbialites from China, Iran, Turkey, Armenia, Slovenia and Hungary are investigated to determine the factors that allowed microbialite-forming microbial mats to flourish following the end-Permian crisis. The results presented here show that Neotethyan microbial buildups record a unique faunal association due to the presence of keratose sponges, while the Palaeotethyan buildups have a higher proportion of molluscs and the foraminifera Earlandia. The distribution of the faunal components within the microbial fabrics suggests that, except for the keratose sponges and some microconchids, most of the metazoans were transported into the microbial framework via wave currents. The presence of both microbialites and metazoan associations were limited to oxygenated settings, suggesting that a factor other than anoxia resulted in a relaxation of ecological constraints following the mass extinction event. It is inferred that the end-Permian mass extinction event decreased the diversity and abundance of metazoans to the point of significantly reducing competition, allowing photosynthesis-based microbial mats to flourish in shallow water settings and resulting in the formation of widespread microbialites.
The Raman spectra of pure N-2, CO2, and CH4 were analyzed over the range 10 to 500 bars and from -160 degrees C to 200 degrees C (N-2), 22 degrees C to 350 degrees C (CO2), and -100 degrees C to 450 degrees C (CH4). At constant temperature, Raman peak position, including the more intense CO2 peak (nu+), decreases (shifts to lower wave number) with increasing pressure for all three gases over the entire pressure and temperature (PT) range studied. At constant pressure, the peak position for CO2 and CH4 increases (shifts to higher wave number) with increasing temperature over the entire PT range studied. In contrast, N-2 first shows an increase in peak position with increasing temperature at constant pressure, followed by a decrease in peak position with increasing temperature. The inflection temperature at which the trend reverses for N-2 is located between 0 degrees C and 50 degrees C at pressures above similar to 50 bars and is pressure dependent. Below similar to 50 bars, the inflection temperature was observed as low as -120 degrees C. The shifts in Raman peak positions with PT are related to relative density changes, which reflect changes in intermolecular attraction and repulsion. A conceptual model relating the Raman spectral properties of N-2, CO2, and CH4 to relative density (volume) changes and attractive and repulsive forces is presented here. Additionally, reduced temperature-dependent densimeters and barometers are presented for each pure component over the respective PT ranges. The Raman spectral behavior of the pure gases as a function of temperature and pressure is assessed to provide a framework for understanding the behavior of each component in multicomponent N-2-CO2-CH4 gas systems in a future study.
On 2015 July 18, near perihelion at a heliocentric distance of 1.28 au, the Visible InfraRed Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS-M) on board the Rosetta spacecraft had the opportunity of observing dust activity in the inner coma with a view of the night side (shadowed side) of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. At the time of the measurements we present here, we observe a dust plume that originates on the far side of the nucleus. We are able to identify the approximate location of its source at the boundary between the Hapi and Anuket regions, and we find that it has been in darkness for some hours before the observation. Assuming that this time span is equal to the conductive time scale, we obtain a thermal inertia in the range 25-36 W K-1 m(-2) s(-1/2). These thermal inertia values can be used to verify with a 3D finite-element method (REM) numerical code whether the surface and subsurface temperatures agree with the values found in the literature. We explored three different configurations: (1) a layer of water ice mixed with dust beneath a dust mantle of 5 mm with thermal inertia of 36 J m(-2) K-1 S-0.5 ; (2) the same structure, but with thermal inertia of 100 J m(-2) K-1 S-0.5; (3) an ice-dust mixture that is directly exposed. Of these three configurations, the first seems to be the most reasonable, both for the low thermal inertia and for the agreement with the surface and subsurface temperatures that have been found for the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. The spectral properties of the plume show that the visible dust color ranged from 16 +/- 4.8%/100 nm to 13 +/- 2.6%/100 nm, indicating that this plume has no detectable color gradient. The morphology of the plume can be classified as a narrow jet that has an estimated total ejected mass of between 6 and 19 tons when we assume size distribution indices between -2.5 and -3.
Context. On 27 April 2015, when comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was at 1.76 au from the Sun and moving toward perihelion, the OSIRIS and VIRTIS-M instruments on board the Rosetta spacecraft simultaneously observed the evolving dust and gas coma during a complete rotation of the comet. Aims. We aim to characterize the spatial distribution of dust, H2O, and CO2 gas in the inner coma. To do this, we performed a quantitative analysis of the release of dust and gas and compared the observed H2O production rate with the rate we calculated using a thermophysical model. Methods. For this study we selected OSIRIS WAC images at 612 nm (dust) and VIRTIS-M image cubes at 612 nm, 2700 nm (H2O emission band), and 4200 nm (CO2 emission band). We measured the average signal in a circular annulus to study the spatial variation around the comet, and in a sector of the annulus to study temporal variation in the sunward direction with comet rotation, both at a fixed distance of 3.1 km from the comet center. Results. The spatial correlation between dust and water, both coming from the sunlit side of the comet, shows that water is the main driver of dust activity in this time period. The spatial distribution of CO2 is not correlated with water and dust. There is no strong temporal correlation between the dust brightness and water production rate as the comet rotates. The dust brightness shows a peak at 0 degrees subsolar longitude, which is not pronounced in the water production. At the same epoch, there is also a maximum in CO2 production. An excess of measured water production with respect to the value calculated using a simple thermophysical model is observed when the head lobe and regions of the southern hemisphere with strong seasonal variations are illuminated (subsolar longitude 270 degrees-50 degrees). A drastic decrease in dust production when the water production (both measured and from the model) displays a maximum occurs when typical northern consolidated regions are illuminated and the southern hemisphere regions with strong seasonal variations are instead in shadow (subsolar longitude 50 degrees-90 degrees). Possible explanations of these observations are presented and discussed.
We present an analysis of two pulsating subdwarf B stars PHL 457 and EQ Psc observed during the K2 mission. The K2 light curves of both stars show variation consistent with irradiation of a cooler companion by the hot subdwarf. They also show higher frequency oscillations consistent with pulsation. Using new spectroscopic data, we measured the radial velocity, effective temperature, surface gravity, and helium abundance of both hot subdwarfs as a function of orbital phase. We confirm the previously published spectroscopic orbit of PHL 457, and present the first spectroscopic orbit of EQ Psc. The orbital periods are 0.313 and 0.801 d, respectively. For EQPsc, we find a strong correlation between T-eff and orbital phase, due to contribution of light from the irradiated companion. We calculated amplitude spectra, identified significant pulsation frequencies, and searched for multiplets and asymptotic period spacings. By means of multiplets and period spacing, we identified the degrees of several pulsation modes in each star. The g-mode multiplets indicate subsynchronous core rotation with periods of 4.6 d (PHL 457) and 9.4 d (EQ Psc). We made spectral energy disctribution (SED) fits of PHL 457 and EQ Psc using available broad-band photometry and Gaia data. While the SED of PHL 457 shows no evidence of a cool companion, the SED for EQPsc clearly shows an infrared (IR) access consistent with a secondary with a temperature of about 6800K and a radius of 0.23 R-circle dot. This is the first detection of an IR access in any sdB + dM binary.
Narcissism is unrelated to using first-person singular pronouns. Whether narcissism is linked to other language use remains unclear. We aimed to identify linguistic markers of narcissism. We applied the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count to texts (k = 15; N = 4,941). The strongest positive correlates were using words related to sports, second-person pronouns, and swear words. The strongest negative correlates were using anxiety/fear words, tentative words, and words related to sensory/perceptual processes. Effects were small (each |r| < .10).
Debate persists concerning the timing and geodynamics of intercontinental collision, style of syncollisional deformation, and development of topography and fold-and-thrust belts along the >1,700-km-long Izmir-Ankara-Erzincan suture zone (IAESZ) in Turkey. Resolving this debate is a necessary precursor to evaluating the integrity of convergent margin models and kinematic, topographic, and biogeographic reconstructions of the Mediterranean domain. Geodynamic models argue either for a synchronous or diachronous collision during either the Late Cretaceous and/or Eocene, followed by Eocene slab breakoff and postcollisional magmatism. We investigate the collision chronology in western Anatolia as recorded in the sedimentary archives of the 90-km-long Saricakaya Basin perched at shallow structural levels along the IAESZ. Based on new zircon U-Pb geochronology and depositional environment and sedimentary provenance results, we demonstrate that the Saricakaya Basin is an Eocene sedimentary basin with sediment sourced from both the IAESZ and Sogut Thrust fault to the south and north, respectively, and formed primarily by flexural loading from north-south shortening along the syncollisional Sogut Thrust. Our results refine the timing of collision between the Anatolides and Pontide terranes in western Anatolia to Maastrichtian-Middle Paleocene and Early Eocene crustal shortening and basin formation. Furthermore, we demonstrate contemporaneous collision, deformation, and magmatism across the IAESZ, supporting synchronous collision models. We show that regional postcollisional magmatism can be explained by renewed underthrusting instead of slab breakoff. This new IAESZ chronology provides additional constraints for kinematic, geodynamic, and biogeographic reconstructions of the Mediterranean domain.
The ‘bomb-pulse’ method is a chronological approach to further constrain the age of speleothems that grew between 1950 CE – present. Establishing dependable chronological constraints is crucial for modern calibration studies of speleothems to instrumental climate records, which provides the basis for paleoclimate interpretations. However, a large unknown is how 14C is transferred from the atmosphere to any individual speleothem owing to the site-specific residence times of organic matter above cave systems. Here, we employ the bomb-pulse method to build chronologies from 14C measurements in combination with a new unsaturated zone C model which considers C decomposition as a continuum, to better understand unsaturated zone 14C dynamics. The bomb-pulse curves of eight speleothems from southern Australia in three contrasting climatic regions; the semi-arid Wellington Caves site, the mediterranean Golgotha Cave site and the montane Yarrangobilly Caves site, are investigated. Overall, the modelled 14C bomb-pulse curves produce excellent fits with measured 14C speleothem data (r2 = 0.82–0.99). The C modelling reveals that unsaturated zone C is predominately young at the semi-arid site, with a weighted-mean residence time of 32 years and that tree root respiration is likely an important source of vadose CO2. At the montane site, ∼39% of C is young (<1 years), but the weighted-mean C ages are older (145–220 years). The mediterranean site has very little contribution from young C (<12%: 0–1 years), with weighted-mean ages between 157 and 245 years, likely due to greater adsorption of organic matter in the upper vadose zone during matrix flow, and remobilisation of C from young syngenetic karst. New end members for low speleothem Dead Carbon Proportion (DCP) are identified (2.19% and 1.65%, respectively) for Australian montane and semi-arid zone speleothems, where oversupply of modern CO2 in the vadose zone leads to lower DCP. It is also demonstrated that DCP can be quite variable over small time scales, that processes may be difficult to untangle and a constant DCP assumption is likely invalid. DCP variability over time is mainly controlled by the changes vadose zone CO2, where vegetation regeneration, wild-fires and karst hydrology play an important role.
Flood risk will increase in many areas around the world due to climate change and increase in economic exposure. This implies that adequate flood insurance schemes are needed to adapt to increasing flood risk and to minimise welfare losses for households in flood-prone areas. Flood insurance markets may need reform to offer sufficient and affordable financial protection and incentives for risk reduction. Here, we present the results of a study that aims to evaluate the ability of flood insurance arrangements in Europe to cope with trends in flood risk, using criteria that encompass common elements of the policy debate on flood insurance reform. We show that the average risk-based flood insurance premium could double between 2015 and 2055 in the absence of more risk reduction by households exposed to flooding. We show that part of the expected future increase in flood risk could be limited by flood insurance mechanisms that better incentivise risk reduction by policyholders, which lowers vulnerability. The affordability of flood insurance can be improved by introducing the key features of public-private partnerships (PPPs), which include public reinsurance, limited premium cross-subsidisation between low- and high-risk households, and incentives for policyholder-level risk reduction. These findings were evaluated in a comprehensive sensitivity analysis and support ongoing reforms in Europe and abroad that move towards risk-based premiums and link insurance with risk reduction, strengthen purchase requirements, and engage in multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Movement ecology aims to provide common terminology and an integrative framework of movement research across all groups of organisms. Yet such work has focused on unitary organisms so far, and thus the important group of filamentous fungi has not been considered in this context. With the exception of spore dispersal, movement in filamentous fungi has not been integrated into the movement ecology field. At the same time, the field of fungal ecology has been advancing research on topics like informed growth, mycelial translocations, or fungal highways using its own terminology and frameworks, overlooking the theoretical developments within movement ecology. We provide a conceptual and terminological framework for interdisciplinary collaboration between these two disciplines, and show how both can benefit from closer links: We show how placing the knowledge from fungal biology and ecology into the framework of movement ecology can inspire both theoretical and empirical developments, eventually leading towards a better understanding of fungal ecology and community assembly. Conversely, by a greater focus on movement specificities of filamentous fungi, movement ecology stands to benefit from the challenge to evolve its concepts and terminology towards even greater universality. We show how our concept can be applied for other modular organisms (such as clonal plants and slime molds), and how this can lead towards comparative studies with the relationship between organismal movement and ecosystems in the focus.
Thrombolite and stromatolite habitats are becoming increasingly recognized as important refuges for invertebrates during Phanerozoic Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs); it is posited that oxygenic photosynthesis by cyanobacteria in these microbialites provided a refuge from anoxic conditions (i.e., the "microbialite refuge" hypothesis). Here, we test this hypothesis by investigating the distribution of ~34, 500 benthic invertebrate fossils found in ~100 samples from a microbialite succession that developed following the latest Permian mass extinction event on the Great Bank of Guizhou (South China), representing microbial (stromatolites and thrombolites) and non-microbial facies. The stromatolites were the least taxonomically diverse facies, and the thrombolites also recorded significantly lower diversities when compared to the non-microbial facies. Based on the distribution and ornamentation of the bioclasts within the thrombolites and stromatolites, the bioclasts are inferred to have been transported and concentrated in the non-microbial fabrics, that is, cavities around the microbial framework. Therefore, many of the identified metazoans from the post-extinction microbialites are not observed to have been living within a microbial mat. Furthermore, the lifestyle of many of the taxa identified from the microbialites was not suited for, or even amenable to, life within a benthic microbial mat. The high diversity of oxygen-dependent metazoans in the non-microbial facies on the Great Bank of Guizhou, and inferences from geochemical records, suggests that the microbialites and benthic communities developed in oxygenated environments, which disproves that the microbes were the source of the oxygenation. Instead, we posit that microbialite successions represent a taphonomic window for exceptional preservation of the biota, similar to a Konzentrat-Lagerstatte, which has allowed for diverse fossil assemblages to be preserved during intervals of poor preservation.
Within the natural world, organisms use information stored in their material structure to generate a physical response to a wide variety of environmental changes. The ability to program synthetic materials to intrinsically respond to environmental changes in a similar manner has the potential to revolutionize material science. By designing polymeric devices capable of responsively changing shape or behavior based on information encoded into their structure, we can create functional physical behavior, including a shape memory and an actuation capability. Here we highlight the stimuli-responsiveness and shape-changing ability of biological materials and biopolymer-based materials, plus their potential biomedical application, providing a bioperspective on shape-memory materials. We address strategies to incorporate a shape memory (actuation) function in polymeric materials, conceptualized in terms of its relationship with inputs (environmental stimuli) and outputs (shape change). Challenges and opportunities associated with the integration of several functions in a single material body to achieve multifunctionality are discussed. Finally, we describe how elements that sense, convert, and transmit stimuli have been used to create multisensitive materials.
Birth weight variation is influenced by fetal and maternal genetic and non-genetic factors, and has been reproducibly associated with future cardio-metabolic health outcomes. In expanded genome-wide association analyses of own birth weight (n = 321,223) and offspring birth weight (n = 230,069 mothers), we identified 190 independent association signals (129 of which are novel). We used structural equation modeling to decompose the contributions of direct fetal and indirect maternal genetic effects, then applied Mendelian randomization to illuminate causal pathways. For example, both indirect maternal and direct fetal genetic effects drive the observational relationship between lower birth weight and higher later blood pressure: maternal blood pressure-raising alleles reduce offspring birth weight, but only direct fetal effects of these alleles, once inherited, increase later offspring blood pressure. Using maternal birth weight-lowering genotypes to proxy for an adverse intrauterine environment provided no evidence that it causally raises offspring blood pressure, indicating that the inverse birth weight-blood pressure association is attributable to genetic effects, and not to intrauterine programming.
The application of electrical resistivity tomography to peatlands supports conventional coring by providing data on the current condition of peatlands, including data on stratigraphy, peat properties and thickness of organic deposits. Data on the current condition of drained peatlands are particularly required to improve estimates of carbon storage as well as losses and emissions from agriculturally used peatlands. However, most of the studies focusing on electrical resistivity tomography surveys have been conducted on natural peatlands with higher groundwater levels. Peatlands drained for agriculture have not often been studied using geophysical techniques. Drained sites are characterized by low groundwater levels and high groundwater fluctuations during the year, which lead to varying levels of water saturation. To validate better electrical resistivity tomography surveys of drained peatlands, the aim of this laboratory study is to investigate the influence of varying water saturation levels on electrical conductivity (reciprocal of resistivity) for a variety of peat and gyttja types, as well as for different degrees of peat decomposition. Results show that different levels of water saturation strongly influence bulk electrical conductivity. Distinct differences in this relationship exist between peat and gyttja substrates and between different degrees of peat decomposition. Peat shows an exponential relationship for all degrees of decomposition, whereas gyttja, in particular organic-rich gyttja, is characterized by a rather unimodal relationship. The slopes for the relationship between electrical conductivity and water content are steeper at high degrees of decomposition than for peat of low degrees of decomposition. These results have direct implications for field electrical resistivity tomography surveys. In drained peatlands that are strongly susceptible to drying, electrical resistivity tomography surveys have a high potential to monitor the actual field water content. In addition, at comparable water saturations, high or low degrees of decomposition can be inferred from electrical conductivity.
Extreme weather resilience has been defined as being based on three pillars: resistance (the ability to lower impacts), recovery (the ability to bounce back), and adaptive capacity (the ability to learn and improve). These resilience pillars are important both before and after the occurrence of extreme weather events. Extreme weather insurance can influence these pillars of resilience depending on how particular insurance mechanisms are structured. We explore how the lessons learnt from the current best insurance practices can improve resilience to extreme weather events. We employ an extensive inventory of private property and agricultural crop insurance mechanisms to conduct a multi-criteria analysis of insurance market outcomes. We draw conclusions regarding the patterns in the best practice from six European countries to increase resilience. We suggest that requirements to buy a bundle extreme weather event insurance with general insurance packages are strengthened and supported with structures to financing losses through public-private partnerships. Moreover, support for low income households through income vouchers could be provided. Similarly, for the agricultural sector we propose moving towards comprehensive crop yield insurance linked to general agricultural subsidies. In both cases a nationally representative body can coordinate the various stakeholders into acting in concert.
This research was designed to adapt and investigate the psychometric properties of the Short Dark Triad measure (Jones and Paulhus Assessment, 21(1), 28-41, 2014) in a German sample within four studies (total N=1463); the measure evaluates three personality dimensions: narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism. The structure of the instrument was analysed by Confirmatory Factor Analyses procedure. It indicated that the three-factor structure had the best fit to the data. Next, the Short Dark Triad measure was evaluated in terms of construct, convergent and discriminant validity, internal consistency ( .72), and test-retest reliability during a 4-week period ( .73). Concurrent validity of the SD3 was supported by relating its subscales to measures of the Big Five concept, aggression, and self-esteem. We concluded that the Short Dark Triad instrument presented high cross-language replicability. The use of this short inventory in the investigation of the Dark Triad personality model in the German language context is suggested.
Sentence comprehension requires the assignment of thematic relations between the verb and its noun arguments in order to determine who is doing what to whom. In some languages, such as English, word order is the primary syntactic cue. In other languages, such as German, case-marking is additionally used to assign thematic roles. During development children have to acquire the thematic relevance of these syntactic cues and weigh them against semantic cues. Here we investigated the processing of syntactic cues and semantic cues in 2- and 3-year-old children by analyzing their behavioral and neurophysiological responses. Case-marked subject-first and object-first sentences (syntactic cue) including animate and inanimate nouns (semantic cue) were presented auditorily. The semantic animacy cue either conflicted with or supported the thematic roles assigned by syntactic case-marking. In contrast to adults, for whom semantics did not interfere with case-marking, children attended to both syntactic and to semantic cues with a stronger reliance on semantic cues in early development. Children’s event-related brain potentials indicated sensitivity to syntactic information but increased processing costs when case-marking and animacy assigned conflicting thematic roles. These results demonstrate an early developmental sensitivity and ongoing shift towards the use of syntactic cues during sentence comprehension.
Soil degradation by water is a serious environmental problem worldwide, with specific climatic factors being the major causes. We investigated the relationships between synoptic atmospheric patterns (i.e. weather types, WTs) and runoff, erosion and sediment yield throughout the Mediterranean basin by analyzing a large database of natural rainfall events at 68 research sites in 9 countries. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to identify spatial relationships of the different WTs including three hydro-sedimentary variables: rainfall, runoff, and sediment yield (SY, used to refer to both soil erosion measured at plot scale and sediment yield registered at catchment scale). The results indicated 4 spatial classes of rainfall and runoff: (a) northern sites dependent on North (N) and North West (NW) flows; (b) eastern sites dependent on E and NE flows; (c) southern sites dependent on S and SE flows; and, finally, (d) western sites dependent on W and SW flows. Conversely, three spatial classes are identified for SY characterized by: (a) N and NE flows in northern sites (b) E flows in eastern sites, and (c) W and SW flows in western sites. Most of the rainfall, runoff and SY occurred during a small number of daily events, and just a few WTs accounted for large percentages of the total. Our results confirm that characterization by WT improves understanding of the general conditions under which runoff and SY occur, and provides useful information for understanding the spatial variability of runoff, and SY throughout the Mediterranean basin. The approach used here could be useful to aid of the design of regional water management and soil conservation measures.
Three small stalagmites from Zoolithencave (southern Germany) show visible laminae, which consist of a clear and a brownish, pigmented layer pair. This potentially provides the opportunity to construct precise chronologies by counting annual laminae. The growth period of the three stalagmites was constrained by the C-14 bomb peak in the youngest part of all three stalagmites and C-14-dating of a piece of charcoal in the consolidated base part of stalagmite Zoo-rez-2. These data suggest an age of AD 1970 for the top laminae and a lower age limit of AD 1973-1682 or AD 1735-1778. Laminae were counted and their thickness determined on scanned thin sections of all stalagmites. On stalagmites Zoo-rez-1 and -2, three tracks were measured near the growth axes, each separated into three sections at prominent anchor laminae (I, II, III). Each section was replicated three times (a, b, c). For Zoo-rez-3, only one track was measured. The total number of laminae counted for Zoo-rez-1 ranges from 138 to 177, for Zoo-rez-2 from 119 to 145, and for Zoo-rez-3 from 159 to 166. The numbers agree well with the range constrained by the bomb peak and the age of the charcoal, which supports the annual origin of the laminae. The replicated measurements of the different tracks as well as the three different tracks on the stalagmites Zoo-rez-1 and-2 were cross-dated using the TSAP-Win (R) tree-ring software. This software is very useful for cross-dating because it enables to insert or delete missing or false laminae as well as identifying common pattern by shifting the series back and forth in time. However, visual inspection of the thin sections was necessary to confirm detection of missing or false laminae by TSAP-Win (R). For all three Zoo-rez speleothems, crossdating of the mean lamina thickness series was not possible due to a missing common pattern. The cross-dating procedure results in three refined chronologies for the three Zoo-rez stalagmites of ranging from AD 1821-1970 (Zoo-rez-1), AD 1835-1970 (Zoo-rez-2), and AD 1808-1970 (Zoo-rez-3).
Influenza A virus is a pathogen responsible for severe seasonal epidemics threatening human and animal populations every year. One of the ten major proteins encoded by the viral genome, the matrix protein M1, is abundantly produced in infected cells and plays a structural role in determining the morphology of the virus. During assembly of new viral particles, M1 is recruited to the host cell membrane where it associates with lipids and other viral proteins. The structure of M1 is only partially known. In particular, structural details of M1 interactions with the cellular plasma membrane as well as M1 protein interactions and multimerization have not been clarified, yet. In this work, we employed a set of complementary experimental and theoretical tools to tackle these issues. Using raster image correlation, surface plasmon resonance and circular dichroism spectroscopies, we quantified membrane association and oligomerization of full-length M1 and of different genetically engineered M1 constructs (i.e., N- and C-terminally truncated constructs and a mutant of the polybasic region, residues 95-105). Furthermore, we report novel information on structural changes in M1 occurring upon binding to membranes. Our experimental results are corroborated by an all-atom model of the full-length M1 protein bound to a negatively charged lipid bilayer.
Suboptimal post-operative improvements in functional capacity are often observed after minimally invasive aortic valve replacement (mini-AVR). It remains to be studied how AVR affects the cardiopulmonary and skeletal muscle function during exercise to explain these clinical observations and to provide a basis for improved/tailored post-operative rehabilitation. Twenty two patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) (aortic valve area (AVA) < 1.0 cm(2)) were preoperatively compared to 22 healthy controls during submaximal constant-workload endurance-type exercise for oxygen uptake (V-O2), carbon dioxide output (V-CO2), respiratory gas exchange ratio, expiratory volume (V-E), ventilatory equivalents for O-2 (V-E/V-O2) and CO2 (V-E/V-CO2), respiratory rate (RR), tidal volume (V-t), heart rate (HR), oxygen pulse (V-O2/HR), blood lactate, Borg ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and exercise-onset V-O2 kinetics. These exercise tests were repeated at 5 and 21 days after AVR surgery (n = 14), along with echocardiographic examinations. Respiratory exchange ratio and ventilatory equivalents (V-E/V-O2 and V-E/V-CO2) were significantly elevated, V-O2 and V-O2/HR were significantly lowered, and exercise-onset V-O2 kinetics were significantly slower in AS patients vs. healthy controls (P < 0.05). Although the AVA was restored by mini-AVR in AS patients, V-E/V-O2 and V-E/V-CO2 further worsened significantly within 5 days after surgery, accompanied by elevations in Borg RPE, V-E and RR, and lowered V-t. At 21 days after mini-AVR, exercise-onset V-O2 kinetics further slowed significantly (P < 0.05). A decline in pulmonary function was observed early aftermini-AVRsurgery, which was followed by a decline in skeletal muscle function in the subsequent weeks of recovery. Therefore, a tailored rehabilitation programmeshould include training modalities for the respiratory and peripheral muscular system.
Prenatal stress (PS) has been related to altered hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity later in life. So far, studies in children assessing HPA axis functioning have focused on salivary cortisol, reflecting daytime activity. The present work is part of a prospective study and aims to extend knowledge about the association between PS and HPA axis regulation in children. To do so, we investigated cortisol, cortisone, and the ratio cortisone/(cortisone + cortisol) in the first morning urine of 45-month-old children in relation to several measures of maternal stress during pregnancy. Urinary cortisol and cortisone were measured by online turbulent flow chromatography coupled with high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. PS was defined as: perceived stress for aim 1 (Perceived Stress Scale; n = 280); presence of self-reported (n = 371) and expert-rated psychopathology for aim 2 (Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview; n = 281); continuous measures of anxiety and depression for exploratory aim 3 (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale; n = 280). The ratio cortisone/(cortisone + cortisol) as a global marker for the balance between the enzymes metabolizing cortisol to cortisone and vice versa (11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases type 1 and 2; 11 beta-HSD1 and 2) was not associated with any measure of maternal PS (aims 1-3). The present study provides insight into possible programming effects of PS on nocturnal HPA axis activity and a proxy of 11 beta-HSD in a large sample. The results suggest that the nocturnal rate of cortisol production is lower in children exposed to PS, but do not support the hypothesis of divergent 11 beta-HSD activity.
Enhancers are critical for developmental stage-specific gene expression, but their dynamic regulation in plants remains poorly understood. Here we compare genome-wide localization of H3K27ac, chromatin accessibility and transcriptomic changes during flower development in Arabidopsis. H3K27ac prevalently marks promoter-proximal regions, suggesting that H3K27ac is not a hallmark for enhancers in Arabidopsis. We provide computational and experimental evidence to confirm that distal DNase. hypersensitive sites are predictive of enhancers. The predicted enhancers are highly stage-specific across flower development, significantly associated with SNPs for flowering-related phenotypes, and conserved across crucifer species. Through the integration of genome-wide transcription factor (TF) binding datasets, we find that floral master regulators and stage-specific TFs are largely enriched at developmentally dynamic enhancers. Finally, we show that enhancer clusters and intronic enhancers significantly associate with stage-specific gene regulation by floral master TFs. Our study provides insights into the functional flexibility of enhancers during plant development, as well as hints to annotate plant enhancers.
Small-scale variations in mineral chemistry, textures, and platinum group element (PGE) mineralization were investigated in the Lower and Middle Group chromitite layers LG6, LG6a, MG1, MG2, and MG2 II from vertical drill core profiles at the Thaba mine in the northwestern limb of the Bushveld Complex. We present detailed geochemical profiles of chromite composition and chromite crystal size distribution curves to shed light on the processes of chromite accumulation and textural modification as well as mineralization. Multiple samples within each layer were assayed for PGE concentrations, and the respective platinum group mineral association was determined by mineral liberation analysis (MLA). There is strong evidence for postcumulus changes in the chromitites. The crystal size distribution curves suggest that the primary chromite texture was coarsened by a combination of adcumulus growth and textural equilibration, while compaction of the crystal mush played only a minor role. Mineral compositions were also modified by postcumulus processes, but because of the very high modal amount of chromite and its local preservation in orthopyroxene oikocrysts, that phase retained much primary information. Vertical variations of chromite composition within chromitite layers and from one layer to another do not support the idea of chromite accumulation from crystal-rich slurries or crystal settling from a large magma chamber. Instead, we favor a successive buildup of chromitite layers by repeated injections of relatively thin layers of chromite-saturated magmas, with in situ crystallization occurring at the crystal mush-magma interface. The adcumulus growth of chromite grains to form massive chromitite required addition of Cr to the layers, which we attribute to downward percolation from the overlying magma. The PGE concentrations are elevated in all chromitite layers compared to adjacent silicate rocks and show a systematic increase upward from LG6 (avg 807 ppb Ir + Ru + Rh + Pt + Pd + Au) to MG2 II (avg 2,062 ppb). There are also significant internal variations in all layers, with enrichments at hanging and/or footwalls. The enriched nature of chromitites in PGEs compared to host pyroxenites is a general feature, independent of the layer thickness. The MLA results distinguish two principal groups of PGE mineral associations: the LG6, LG6, and MG1 are dominated by the malanite series, laurite, and PGE sulfarsenides, while the MG2 and MG2 II layers are characterized by laurite and PGE sulfides as well as Pt-Fe-Sn and PGE-Sb-Bi-Pb alloys. Differences in the PGE associations are attributed to postcumulus alteration of the MG2 and MG2 II layer, while the chromitites below, particularly LG6 and LG6a, contain a more pristine association.
Habitat fragmentation threatens global biodiversity. To date, there is only limited understanding of how the different aspects of habitat fragmentation (habitat loss, number of fragments and isolation) affect species diversity within complex ecological networks such as food webs. Here, we present a dynamic and spatially explicit food web model which integrates complex food web dynamics at the local scale and species-specific dispersal dynamics at the landscape scale, allowing us to study the interplay of local and spatial processes in metacommunities. We here explore how the number of habitat patches, i.e. the number of fragments, and an increase of habitat isolation affect the species diversity patterns of complex food webs (alpha-,beta-,gamma-, diversities). We specifically test whether there is a trophic dependency in the effect of these two factors on species diversity. In our model, habitat isolation is the main driver causing species loss and diversity decline. Our results emphasize that large-bodied consumer species at high trophic positions go extinct faster than smaller species at lower trophic levels, despite being superior dispersers that connect fragmented landscapes better. We attribute the loss of top species to a combined effect of higher biomass loss during dispersal with increasing habitat isolation in general, and the associated energy limitation in highly fragmented landscapes, preventing higher trophic levels to persist. To maintain trophic-complex and species-rich communities calls for effective conservation planning which considers the interdependence of trophic and spatial dynamics as well as the spatial context of a landscape and its energy availability.
The changing temperature of the nucleus of comet 67P induced by morphological and seasonal effects
(2019)
Knowledge of the surface temperature distribution on a comet’s nucleus and its temporal evolution at different timescales is key to constraining its thermophysical properties and understanding the physical processes that take place at and below the surface. Here we report on time-resolved maps of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko retrieved on the basis of infrared data acquired by the Visible InfraRed and Thermal Imaging Spectrometer (VIRTIS) onboard the Rosetta orbiter in 2014, over a roughly two-month period in the pre-perihelion phase at heliocentric distances between 3.62 and 3.31 au from the Sun. We find that at a spatial resolution ≤15 m per pixel, the measured temperatures point out the major effect that self-heating, due to the complex shape of the nucleus, has on the diurnal temperature variation. The bilobate nucleus of comet 67P also induces daytime shadowing effects, which result in large thermal gradients. Over longer periods, VIRTIS-derived temperature values reveal seasonal changes driven by decreasing heliocentric distance combined with an increasing abundance of ice within the uppermost centimetre-thick layer, which implies the possibility of having a largely pristine nucleus interior already in the shallow subsurface
The Olorgesailie Drilling Project and the related Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project in East Africa were initiated to test hypotheses and models linking environmental change to hominin evolution by drilling lake basin sediments adjacent to important archeological and paleoanthropological sites. Drill core OL012-1A recovered 139 m of sedimentary and volcaniclastic strata from the Koora paleolake basin, southern Kenya Rift, providing the opportunity to compare paleoenvironmental influences over the past million years with the parallel record exposed at the nearby Olorgesailie archeological site. To refine our ability to link core-to-outcrop paleoenvironmental records, we institute here a methodological framework for deriving a robust age model for the complex lithostratigraphy of OL012-1A. Firstly, chronostratigraphic control points for the core were established based on 4 Ar/39Ar ages from intercalated tephra deposits and a basal trachyte flow, as well as the stratigraphic position of the Brunhes-Matuyama geomagnetic reversal. This dataset was combined with the position and duration of paleosols, and analyzed using a new Bayesian algorithm for high-resolution age-depth modeling of hiatus-bearing stratigraphic sections. This model addresses three important aspects relevant to highly dynamic, nonlinear depositional environments: 1) correcting for variable rates of deposition, 2) accommodating hiatuses, and 3) quantifying realistic age uncertainty with centimetric resolution. Our method is applicable to typical depositional systems in extensional rifts as well as to drill cores from other dynamic terrestrial or aquatic environments. We use the core age model and lithostratigraphy to examine the inter connectivity of the Koora Basin to adjacent areas and sources of volcanism. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Saturn’s main ring system is associated with a set of small moons that either are embedded within it or interact with the rings to alter their shape and composition. Five close flybys of the moons Pan, Daphnis, Atlas, Pandora, and Epimetheus were performed between December 2016 and April 2017 during the ring-grazing orbits of the Cassini mission. Data on the moons’ morphology, structure, particle environment, and composition were returned, along with images in the ultraviolet and thermal infrared. We find that the optical properties of the moons’ surfaces are determined by two competing processes: contamination by a red material formed in Saturn’s main ring system and accretion of bright icy particles or water vapor from volcanic plumes originating on the moon Enceladus.
Malnutrition is widespread in older people and represents a major geriatric syndrome with multifactorial etiology and severe consequences for health outcomes and quality of life. The aim of the present paper is to describe current approaches and evidence regarding malnutrition treatment and to highlight relevant knowledge gaps that need to be addressed. Recently published guidelines of the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (ESPEN) provide a summary of the available evidence and highlight the wide range of different measures that can be taken—from the identification and elimination of potential causes to enteral and parenteral nutrition—depending on the patient’s abilities and needs. However, more than half of the recommendations therein are based on expert consensus because of a lack of evidence, and only three are concern patient-centred outcomes. Future research should further clarify the etiology of malnutrition and identify the most relevant causes in order to prevent malnutrition. Based on limited and partly conflicting evidence and the limitations of existing studies, it remains unclear which interventions are most effective in which patient groups, and if specific situations, diseases or etiologies of malnutrition require specific approaches. Patient-relevant outcomes such as functionality and quality of life need more attention, and research methodology should be harmonised to allow for the comparability of studies.
The highly conserved enzyme arginyl-tRNA-protein transferase (Ate1) mediates arginylation, a posttranslational modification that is only incompletely understood at its molecular level. To investigate whether arginylation affects actin-dependent processes in a simple model organism, Dictyostelium discoideum, we knocked out the gene encoding Ate1 and characterized the phenotype of ate1-null cells. Visualization of actin cytoskeleton dynamics by live-cell microscopy indicated significant changes in comparison to wild-type cells. Ate1-null cells were almost completely lacking focal actin adhesion sites at the substrate-attached surface and were only weakly adhesive. In two-dimensional chemotaxis assays toward folate or cAMP, the motility of ate1-null cells was increased. However, in three-dimensional chemotaxis involving more confined conditions, the motility of ate1-null cells was significantly reduced. Live-cell imaging showed that GFP-tagged Ate1 rapidly relocates to sites of newly formed actin-rich protrusions. By mass spectrometric analysis, we identified four arginylation sites in the most abundant actin isoform of Dictyostelium, in addition to arginylation sites in other actin isoforms and several actin-binding proteins. In vitro polymerization assays with actin purified from ate1-null cells revealed a diminished polymerization capacity in comparison to wild-type actin. Our data indicate that arginylation plays a crucial role in the regulation of cytoskeletal activities.
Flood disasters severely impact human subjective well-being (SWB). Nevertheless, few studies have examined the influence of flood events on individual well-being and how such impacts may be limited by flood protection measures. This study estimates the long term impacts on individual subjective well-being of flood experiences, individual subjective flood risk perceptions, and household flood preparedness decisions. These effects are monetised and placed in context through a comparison with impacts of other adverse events on well-being. We collected data from households in flood-prone areas in France. The results indicate that experiencing a flood has a large negative impact on subjective well-being that is incompletely attenuated over time. Moreover, individuals do not need to be directly affected by floods to suffer SWB losses since subjective well-being is lower for those who expect their flood risk to increase or who have seen a neighbour being flooded. Floodplain inhabitants who prepared for flooding by elevating their home have a higher subjective well-being. A monetisation of the aforementioned well-being impacts shows that a flood requires Euro150,000 in immediate compensation to attenuate SWB losses. The decomposition of the monetised impacts of flood experience into tangible losses and intangible effects on SWB shows that intangible effects are about twice as large as the tangible direct monetary flood losses. Investments in flood protection infrastructure may be under funded if the intangible SWB benefits of flood protection are not taken into account.
The Early Growth Genetics (EGG) and EArly Genetics and Lifecourse Epidemiology (EAGLE) consortia
(2019)
The impact of many unfavorable childhood traits or diseases, such as low birth weight and mental disorders, is not limited to childhood and adolescence, as they are also associated with poor outcomes in adulthood, such as cardiovascular disease. Insight into the genetic etiology of childhood and adolescent traits and disorders may therefore provide new perspectives, not only on how to improve wellbeing during childhood, but also how to prevent later adverse outcomes. To achieve the sample sizes required for genetic research, the Early Growth Genetics (EGG) and EArly Genetics and Lifecourse Epidemiology (EAGLE) consortia were established. The majority of the participating cohorts are longitudinal population-based samples, but other cohorts with data on early childhood phenotypes are also involved. Cohorts often have a broad focus and collect(ed) data on various somatic and psychiatric traits as well as environmental factors. Genetic variants have been successfully identified for multiple traits, for example, birth weight, atopic dermatitis, childhood BMI, allergic sensitization, and pubertal growth. Furthermore, the results have shown that genetic factors also partly underlie the association with adult traits. As sample sizes are still increasing, it is expected that future analyses will identify additional variants. This, in combination with the development of innovative statistical methods, will provide detailed insight on the mechanisms underlying the transition from childhood to adult disorders. Both consortia welcome new collaborations. Policies and contact details are available from the corresponding authors of this manuscript and/or the consortium websites.
Quantifying erosion rates, and how they compare to rock uplift rates, is fundamental for understanding landscape response to tectonics and associated sediment fluxes from upland areas. The erosional response to uplift is well-represented by river incision and the associated landslide activity. However, characterising the relationship between these processes remains a major challenge in tectonically active areas, in some cases because landslides can preclude obtaining reliable erosion rates from cosmogenic radionuclide (CRN) concentrations. Here, we quantify the control of tectonics and its coupled geomorphic response on the erosion rates of catchments in southern Italy that are experiencing a transient response to normal faulting. We analyse in-situ Be-10 concentrations for detrital sediment samples, collected along the strike of faults with excellent tectonic constraints and landslide inventories. We demonstrate that Be-10-derived erosion rates are controlled by fault throw rates and the extent of transient incision and associated landsliding in the catchments. We show that the low-relief sub-catchments above knickpoints erode at uniform background rates of similar to 0.10 mm/yr, while downstream of knickpoints, erosion removes similar to 50% of the rock uplifted by the faults, at rates of 0.10-0.64 mm/yr. Despite widespread landsliding, CRN samples provide relatively consistent and accurate erosion rates, most likely because landslides are frequent, small, and shallow, and represent the integrated record of landsliding over several seismic cycles. Consequently, we combine these validated Be-10 erosion rates and data from a geomorphological landslide inventory in a published numerical model, to gain further insight into the long-term landslide rates and sediment mixing, highlighting the potential of CRN data to study landslide dynamics. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Shape memory is the capability of a material to be deformed and fixed into a temporary shape. Recovery of the original shape can then be triggered only by an external stimulus. Shape-memory polymers are highly deformable materials that can be programmed to recover a memorized shape in response to a variety of environmental and spatially localized stimuli as a one-way effect. The shape-memory function can also be generated as a reversible effect enabling actuation behaviour through macroscale deformation and processing, specifically by dictating the macromolecular orientation of actuation units and of the skeleton structure of geometry-determining units in the polymers. Shape-memory polymers can be programmed and reprogrammed into arbitrary shapes. Both recovery and actuation behaviour are reprogrammable. In this Review, we outline the common basis and key differences between the two shape-memory behaviours of polymers in terms of mechanism, fabrication schemes and characterization methods. We discuss which combination of macromolecular architecture and macroscale processing is necessary for coordinated, decentralized and responsive physical behaviour. The extraction of relevant thermomechanical information is described, and design criteria are shown for microscale and macroscale morphologies to gain high levels of recovered or actuation strains as well as on-demand 2D-to-3D shape transformations. Finally, real-world applications and key future challenges are highlighted.
Specialisation and diversity of multiple trophic groups are promoted by different forest features
(2019)
While forest management strongly influences biodiversity, it remains unclear how the structural and compositional changes caused by management affect different community dimensions (e.g. richness, specialisation, abundance or completeness) and how this differs between taxa. We assessed the effects of nine forest features (representing stand structure, heterogeneity and tree composition) on thirteen above- and belowground trophic groups of plants, animals, fungi and bacteria in 150 temperate forest plots differing in their management type. Canopy cover decreased light resources, which increased community specialisation but reduced overall diversity and abundance. Features increasing resource types and diversifying microhabitats (admixing of oaks and conifers) were important and mostly affected richness. Belowground groups responded differently to those aboveground and had weaker responses to most forest features. Our results show that we need to consider forest features rather than broad management types and highlight the importance of considering several groups and community dimensions to better inform conservation.
SiO(2 )is the main component of silicate melts and thus controls their network structure and physical properties. The compressibility and viscosities of melts at depth are governed by their short range atomic and electronic structure. We measured the O K-edge and the Si L-2,L-3-edge in silica up to 110 GPa using X-ray Raman scattering spectroscopy, and found a striking match to calculated spectra based on structures from molecular dynamic simulations. Between 20 and 27 GPa, Si-[4] species are converted into a mixture of Si-[5] and Si-[6] species and between 60 and 70 GPa, Si-[6] becomes dominant at the expense of Si-[5] with no further increase up to at least 110 GPa. Coordination higher than 6 is only reached beyond 140 GPa, corroborating results from Brillouin scattering. Network modifying elements in silicate melts may shift this change in coordination to lower pressures and thus magmas could be denser than residual solids at the depth of the core-mantle boundary.
Intraspecific genetic diversity and distribution of North African hedgehogs (Mammalia: Erinaceidae)
(2019)
Despite growing efforts to halt biodiversity loss, knowledge of species diversity and distribution is highly geographically biased, leaving some areas unexplored. Taxa distributed in remote, desert areas, such as hedgehogs (Mammalia; Eulipotyphla) in North Africa, are good examples of current knowledge gaps in systematics and biogeography. Here we studied the geographical distribution and intraspecific genetic diversity of hedgehogs in North Africa. Specimens belonging to North African and Eurasian species were analysed with mitochondrial (control region, CR) and nuclear (recombination activating gene 1, RAG1) gene fragments. This revealed a broader geographical distribution of Atelerix algirus in south-western Libya and of Paraechinus aethiopicus along the Atlantic Sahara. High intraspecific genetic differentiation was found in A. algirus and A. albiventris at the mitochondrial level, with nuclear haplotype sharing across their ranges. These findings suggest that biogeographical patterns of hedgehogs in North Africa are more complex than previously suggested, highlighting a need for further investigation in this remote and poorly known area.
The intrinsic predictability of ecological time series and its potential to guide forecasting
(2019)
In this work we present spectra of all gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows that have been promptly observed with the X-shooter spectrograph until 31/03/2017. In total, we have obtained spectroscopic observations of 103 individual GRBs observed within 48 hours of the GRB trigger. Redshifts have been measured for 97 per cent of these, covering a redshift range from 0.059 to 7.84. Based on a set of observational selection criteria that minimise biases with regards to intrinsic properties of the GRBs, the follow-up effort has been focused on producing a homogeneously selected sample of 93 afterglow spectra for GRBs discovered by the Swift satellite. We here provide a public release of all the reduced spectra, including continuum estimates and telluric absorption corrections. For completeness, we also provide reductions for the 18 late-time observations of the underlying host galaxies. We provide an assessment of the degree of completeness with respect to the parent GRB population, in terms of the X-ray properties of the bursts in the sample and find that the sample presented here is representative of the full Swift sample. We have constrained the fraction of dark bursts to be <28 per cent and confirm previous results that higher optical darkness is correlated with increased X-ray absorption. For the 42 bursts for which it is possible, we have provided a measurement of the neutral hydrogen column density, increasing the total number of published HI column density measurements by similar to 33 per cent. This dataset provides a unique resource to study the ISM across cosmic time, from the local progenitor surroundings to the intervening Universe.
Glacial-interglacial variations in CO2 and methane in polar ice cores have been attributed, in part, to changes in global wetland extent, but the wetland distribution before the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, 21 ka to 18 ka) remains virtually unknown. We present a study of global peatland extent and carbon (C) stocks through the last glacial cycle (130 ka to present) using a newly compiled database of 1,063 detailed stratigraphic records of peat deposits buried by mineral sediments, as well as a global peatland model. Quantitative agreement between modeling and observations shows extensive peat accumulation before the LGM in northern latitudes (> 40 degrees N), particularly during warmer periods including the last interglacial (130 ka to 116 ka, MIS 5e) and the interstadial (57 ka to 29 ka, MIS 3). During cooling periods of glacial advance and permafrost formation, the burial of northern peatlands by glaciers and mineral sediments decreased active peatland extent, thickness, and modeled C stocks by 70 to 90% from warmer times. Tropical peatland extent and C stocks show little temporal variation throughout the study period. While the increased burial of northern peats was correlated with cooling periods, the burial of tropical peat was predominately driven by changes in sea level and regional hydrology. Peat burial by mineral sediments represents a mechanism for long-term terrestrial C storage in the Earth system. These results show that northern peatlands accumulate significant C stocks during warmer times, indicating their potential for C sequestration during the warming Anthropocene.
A comprehensive molecular analysis of a simple aqueous complexing system. U(VI) acetate. selected to be independently investigated by various spectroscopic (vibrational, luminescence, X-ray absorption, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy) and quantum chemical methods was achieved by an international round-robin test (RRT). Twenty laboratories from six different countries with a focus on actinide or geochemical research participated and contributed to this scientific endeavor. The outcomes of this RRT were considered on two levels of complexity: first, within each technical discipline, conformities as well as discrepancies of the results and their sources were evaluated. The raw data from the different experimental approaches were found to be generally consistent. In particular, for complex setups such as accelerator-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy, the agreement between the raw data was high. By contrast, luminescence spectroscopic data turned out to be strongly related to the chosen acquisition parameters. Second, the potentials and limitations of coupling various spectroscopic and theoretical approaches for the comprehensive study of actinide molecular complexes were assessed. Previous spectroscopic data from the literature were revised and the benchmark data on the U(VI) acetate system provided an unambiguous molecular interpretation based on the correlation of spectroscopic and theoretical results. The multimethodologic approach and the conclusions drawn address not only important aspects of actinide spectroscopy but particularly general aspects of modern molecular analytical chemistry.
A well-preserved sequence, by Archean standards, of mantle-derived metabasalts and metakomatiites forms large parts of the lower Onverwacht Group of the Barberton Greenstone Belt (South Africa). To elucidate the origin of mafic and ultramafic rocks from this 3.55 to 3.45 Ga sequence, we present a comprehensive geochemical dataset including major and trace elements as well as Lu-Hf and Sm-Nd isotope compositions for a variety of metavolcanic rocks. These include metabasalts of the amphibolite-facies Sandspruit and Theespruit Formations as well as metabasalts and metakomatiites of the lower greenschist-facies Komati Formation. Based on their incompatible trace element patterns, the basalts of the Sandspruit and Theespruit Formations can be subdivided into a light rare earth element (LREE) depleted group, a LREE-undepleted group, and a LREE-enriched group. Positive epsilon Hf-(t) and epsilon Nd-(t) values of ca. +3 to +4 and 0 to +2, respectively, together with depletions in Th and La-CN/Yb-CN indicate derivation of the LREE-depleted basalts from a depleted mantle source. However, chondritic epsilon Hf-(t) and epsilon Nd-(t) values combined with positive Th and La-CN/Yb-CN of the LREE-enriched samples indicate a contribution from older granitoid crust in the petrogenesis of these samples. Trace element patterns of komatiites and basalts of the Komati Formation are generally flat relative to primitive mantle with slight depletions in heavy rare earth elements and Th and overall positive epsilon Hf-(t) of + 2.5 +/- 3.5 (2 s.d.) and epsilon Nd-(t) of + 0.5 +/- 2.2 (2 s. d.). The coherence in trace element characteristics suggests a common magmatic origin for basalts and komatiites. This study reveals that the two lavas were derived from the same mantle plume, i. e. komatiites were formed by high degrees of melting of a depleted mantle source containing residual garnet and the basalts were formed by moderate degrees of partial melting in shallower regions of the mantle. Based on the current dataset, combined with published data, we propose a geodynamic model for the oldest units of the Barberton Greenstone Belt that describes the development from a submerged continental setting (for the Sandspruit and Theespruit Formations) to a submarine plateau setting (for the Komati Formation) as a consequence of continental rifting.
Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine the interrater reliability (IRR) of assessment of multiple systematic reviews (AMSTAR) 2 for reviews of pharmacological or psychological interventions for the treatment of major depression, to compare it to that of AMSTAR and risk of bias in systematic reviews (ROBIS), and to assess the convergent validity between the appraisal tools. Results: The median kappa values as a measure of IRR indicated a moderate agreement for AMSTAR 2 (median = 0.51), a substantial agreement for AMSTAR (median = 0.62), and a fair agreement for ROBIS (median = 0.27). Validity results showed a positive association for AMSTAR and AMSTAR 2 (r = 0.91) as well as ROBIS and AMSTAR 2 (r = 0.84). For the overall rating, AMSTAR 2 showed a high concordance with ROBIS and a lower concordance with AMSTAR. Conclusion: The IRR of AMSTAR 2 was found to be slightly lower than the IRR of AMSTAR and higher than the IRR of ROBIS. Validity measurements indicate that AMSTAR 2 is closely related to both ROBIS and AMSTAR. (C) 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Nitrate or ammonium
(2019)
In freshwaters, algal species are exposed to different inorganic nitrogen (Ni) sources whose incorporation varies in biochemical energy demand. We hypothesized that due to the lesser energy requirement of ammonium (NH4+)-use, in contrast to nitrate (NO3-)-use, more energy remains for other metabolic processes, especially under CO2-and phosphorus (Pi) limiting conditions. Therefore, we tested differences in cell characteristics of the green alga Chlamydomonas acidophila grown on NH4+ or NO3- under covariation of CO2 and Pi-supply in order to determine limitations, in a full-factorial design. As expected, results revealed higher carbon fixation rates for NH4+ grown cells compared to growth with NO3- under low CO2 conditions. NO3- -grown cells accumulated more of the nine analyzed amino acids, especially under Pi-limited conditions, compared to cells provided with NH4+. This is probably due to a slower protein synthesis in cells provided with NO3-. In contrast to our expectations, compared to NH4+ -grown cells NO3- -grown cells had higher photosynthetic efficiency under Pi-limitation. In conclusion, growth on the Ni-source NH4+ did not result in a clearly enhanced Ci-assimilation, as it was highly dependent on Pi and CO2 conditions (replete or limited). Results are potentially connected to the fact that C. acidophila is able to use only CO2 as its inorganic carbon (Ci) source.
Distinct cellular roles for PDCD10 define a gut-brain axis in cerebral cavernous malformation
(2019)
Cerebral cavernous malformation (CCM) is a genetic, cerebrovascular disease. Familial CCM is caused by genetic mutations in KRIT1, CCM2, or PDCD10. Disease onset is earlier and more severe in individuals with PDCD10 mutations. Recent studies have shown that lesions arise from excess mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase 3 (MEKK3) signaling downstream of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) stimulation by lipopolysaccharide derived from the gut microbiome. These findings suggest a gut-brain CCM disease axis but fail to define it or explain the poor prognosis of patients with PDCD10 mutations. Here, we demonstrate that the gut barrier is a primary determinant of CCM disease course, independent of microbiome configuration, that explains the increased severity of CCM disease associated with PDCD10 deficiency. Chemical disruption of the gut barrier with dextran sulfate sodium augments CCM formation in a mouse model, as does genetic loss of Pdcd10, but not Krit1, in gut epithelial cells. Loss of gut epithelial Pdcd10 results in disruption of the colonic mucosal barrier. Accordingly, loss of Mucin-2 or exposure to dietary emulsifiers that reduce the mucus barrier increases CCM burden analogous to loss of Pdcd10 in the gut epithelium. Last, we show that treatment with dexamethasone potently inhibits CCM formation in mice because of the combined effect of action at both brain endothelial cells and gut epithelial cells. These studies define a gut-brain disease axis in an experimental model of CCM in which a single gene is required for two critical components: gut epithelial function and brain endothelial signaling.
We present follow-up observations of the K2-133 multiplanet system. Previously, we announced that K2-133 contained three super-Earths orbiting an M1.5V host star – with tentative evidence of a fourth outer-planet orbiting at the edge of the temperate zone. Here, we report on the validation of the presence of the fourth planet, determining a radius of 1.73+0.14−0.13 R⊕. The four planets span the radius gap of the exoplanet population, meaning further follow-up would be worthwhile to obtain masses and test theories of the origin of the gap. In particular, the trend of increasing planetary radius with decreasing incident flux in the K2-133 system supports the claim that the gap is caused by photo-evaporation of exoplanet atmospheres. Finally, we note that K2-133 e orbits on the edge of the star's temperate zone, and that our radius measurement allows for the possibility that this is a rocky world. Additional mass measurements are required to confirm or refute this scenario.
3-Bromopyruvic acid (3BP) is a potential anticancer drug, the action of which on cellular metabolism is not yet entirely clear. The presence of a bromine atom suggests that it is also reactive towards low-energy electrons, which are produced in large quantities during tumour radiation therapy. Detailed knowledge of the interaction of 3BP with secondary electrons is a prerequisite to gain a complete picture of the effects of 3BP in different forms of cancer therapy. Herein, dissociative electron attachment (DEA) to 3BP in the gas phase has been studied both experimentally by using a crossed-beam setup and theoretically through scattering and quantum chemical calculations. These results are complemented by a vacuum ultraviolet absorption spectrum. The main fragmentation channel is the formation of Br- close to 0 eV and within several resonant features at 1.9 and 3-8 eV. At low electron energies, Br- formation proceeds through sigma* and pi* shape resonances, and at higher energies through core-excited resonances. It is found that the electron-capture cross-section is clearly increased compared with that of non-brominated pyruvic acid, but, at the same time, fragmentation reactions through DEA are significantly altered as well. The 3BP transient negative ion is subject to a lower number of fragmentation reactions than those of pyruvic acid, which indicates that 3BP could indeed act by modifying the electron-transport chains within oxidative phosphorylation. It could also act as a radio-sensitiser.
Fibrous membranes capable of dynamically responding to external stimuli are highly desirable in textiles and biomedical materials, where adaptive behavior is required to accommodate complex environmental changes. For example, the creation of fabrics with temperature-dependent moisture permeability or self-regulating membranes for air filtration is dependent on the development of materials that exhibit a reversible stimuli-responsive pore size change. Here, by imbuing covalently crosslinked poly(ε-caprolactone) (cPCL) fibrous meshes with a reversible bidirectional shape-memory polymer actuation (rbSMPA) we create a material capable of temperature-controlled changes in porosity. Cyclic thermomechanical testing was used to characterize the mechanical properties of the meshes, which were composed of randomly arranged microfibers with diameters of 2.3 ± 0.6 μm giving an average pore size of approx. 10 μm. When subjected to programming strains of εm = 300% and 100% reversible strain changes of εʹrev = 22% ± 1% and 6% ± 1% were measured, with switching temperature ranges of 10 °C–30 °C and 45 °C–60 °C for heating and cooling, respectively. The rbSMPA of cPCL fibrous meshes generated a microscale reversible pore size change of 11% ± 3% (an average of 1.5 ± 0.6 μm), as measured by scanning electron microscopy. The incorporation of a two-way shape-memory actuation capability into fibrous meshes is anticipated to advance the development and application of smart membrane materials, creating commercially viable textiles and devices with enhanced performance and novel functionality.
Low thermal conductivity boulder with high porosity identified on C-type asteroid (162173) Ryugu
(2019)
C-type asteroids are among the most pristine objects in the Solar System, but little is known about their interior structure and surface properties. Telescopic thermal infrared observations have so far been interpreted in terms of a regolith-covered surface with low thermal conductivity and particle sizes in the centimetre range. This includes observations of C-type asteroid (162173) Ryugu1,2,3. However, on arrival of the Hayabusa2 spacecraft at Ryugu, a regolith cover of sand- to pebble-sized particles was found to be absent4,5 (R.J. et al., manuscript in preparation). Rather, the surface is largely covered by cobbles and boulders, seemingly incompatible with the remote-sensing infrared observations. Here we report on in situ thermal infrared observations of a boulder on the C-type asteroid Ryugu. We found that the boulder’s thermal inertia was much lower than anticipated based on laboratory measurements of meteorites, and that a surface covered by such low-conductivity boulders would be consistent with remote-sensing observations. Our results furthermore indicate high boulder porosities as well as a low tensile strength in the few hundred kilopascal range. The predicted low tensile strength confirms the suspected observational bias6 in our meteorite collections, as such asteroidal material would be too frail to survive atmospheric entry7
Low thermal conductivity boulder with high porosity identified on C-type asteroid (162173) Ryugu
(2019)
C-type asteroids are among the most pristine objects in the Solar System, but little is known about their interior structure and surface properties. Telescopic thermal infrared observations have so far been interpreted in terms of a regolith-covered surface with low thermal conductivity and particle sizes in the centimetre range. This includes observations of C-type asteroid (162173) Ryugu1,2,3. However, on arrival of the Hayabusa2 spacecraft at Ryugu, a regolith cover of sand- to pebble-sized particles was found to be absent4,5 (R.J. et al., manuscript in preparation). Rather, the surface is largely covered by cobbles and boulders, seemingly incompatible with the remote-sensing infrared observations. Here we report on in situ thermal infrared observations of a boulder on the C-type asteroid Ryugu. We found that the boulder’s thermal inertia was much lower than anticipated based on laboratory measurements of meteorites, and that a surface covered by such low-conductivity boulders would be consistent with remote-sensing observations. Our results furthermore indicate high boulder porosities as well as a low tensile strength in the few hundred kilopascal range. The predicted low tensile strength confirms the suspected observational bias6 in our meteorite collections, as such asteroidal material would be too frail to survive atmospheric entry7.
Context. Metal-poor massive stars are assumed to be progenitors of certain supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, and compact object mergers that might contribute to the early epochs of the Universe with their strong ionizing radiation. However, this assumption remains mainly theoretical because individual spectroscopic observations of such objects have rarely been carried out below the metallicity of the Small Magellanic Cloud. Aims. Here we explore the predictions of the state-of-the-art theories of stellar evolution combined with those of stellar atmospheres about a certain type of metal-poor (0.02 Z(circle dot)) hot massive stars, the chemically homogeneously evolving stars that we call Transparent Wind Ultraviolet INtense (TWUIN) stars. Methods. We computed synthetic spectra corresponding to a broad range in masses (20 130 M-circle dot) and covering several evolutionary phases from the zero-age main-sequence up to the core helium-burning stage. We investigated the influence of mass loss and wind clumping on spectral appearance and classified the spectra according to the Morgan-Keenan (MK) system. Results. We find that TWUIN stars show almost no emission lines during most of their core hydrogen-burning lifetimes. Most metal lines are completely absent, including nitrogen. During their core helium-burning stage, lines switch to emission, and even some metal lines (oxygen and carbon, but still almost no nitrogen) are detected. Mass loss and clumping play a significant role in line formation in later evolutionary phases, particularly during core helium-burning. Most of our spectra are classified as an early-O type giant or supergiant, and we find Wolf-Rayet stars of type WO in the core helium-burning phase. Conclusions. An extremely hot, early-O type star observed in a low-metallicity galaxy could be the result of chemically homogeneous evolution and might therefore be the progenitor of a long-duration gamma-ray burst or a type Ic supernova. TWUIN stars may play an important role in reionizing the Universe because they are hot without showing prominent emission lines during most of their lifetime.
Being at the western fringe of Europe, Iberia had a peculiar prehistory and a complex pattern of Neolithization. A few studies, all based on modern populations, reported the presence of DNA of likely African origin in this region, generally concluding it was the result of recent gene flow, probably during the Islamic period. Here, we provide evidence of much older gene flow from Africa to Iberia by sequencing whole genomes from four human remains from northern Portugal and southern Spain dated around 4000 years BP (from the Middle Neolithic to the Bronze Age). We found one of them to carry an unequivocal sub-Saharan mitogenome of most probably West or West-Central African origin, to our knowledge never reported before in prehistoric remains outside Africa. Our analyses of ancient nuclear genomes show small but significant levels of sub-Saharan African affinity in several ancient Iberian samples, which indicates that what we detected was not an occasional individual phenomenon, but an admixture event recognizable at the population level. We interpret this result as evidence of an early migration process from Africa into the Iberian Peninsula through a western route, possibly across the Strait of Gibraltar.
Background Small-sided games have been suggested as a viable alternative to conventional endurance training to enhance endurance performance in youth soccer players. This has important implications for long-term athlete development because it suggests that players can increase aerobic endurance through activities that closely resemble their sport of choice. Data Sources The data sources utilised were Google Scholar, PubMed and Microsoft Academic. Study Eligibility Criteria Studies were eligible for inclusion if interventions were carried out in male soccer players (aged < 18years) and compared the effects of small-sided games and conventional endurance training on aerobic endurance performance. We defined small-sided games as modified [soccer] games played on reduced pitch areas, often using adapted rules and involving a smaller number of players than traditional games. We defined conventional endurance training as continuous running or extensive interval training consisting of work durations>3min. Study Appraisal and Synthesis Methods The inverse-variance random-effects model for meta-analyses was used because it allocates a proportionate weight to trials based on the size of their individual standard errors and facilitates analysis whilst accounting for heterogeneity across studies. Effect sizes were represented by the standardised mean difference and presented alongside 95% confidence intervals. Results Seven studies were included in this meta-analysis. Both modes of training were effective in increasing endurance performance. Within-mode effect sizes were both of moderate magnitude [small-sided games: 0.82 (95% confidence interval 0.05, 1.60), Z=2.07 (p=0.04); conventional endurance training: 0.89 (95% confidence interval 0.06, 1.72), Z=2.10 (p=0.04)]. There were only trivial differences [0.04 (95% confidence interval -0.36, 0.43), Z=0.18 (p=0.86)] between the effects on aerobic endurance performance of small-sided games and conventional endurance training. Subgroup analyses showed mostly trivial differences between the training methods across key programming variables such as set duration (>= or < 4 min) and recovery period between sets (>= or< 3min). Programmes that were longer than 8 weeks favoured small-sided games [effect size=0.45 (95% confidence interval -0.12, 1.02), Z=1.54 (p=0.12)], with the opposite being true for conventional endurance training [effect size=-0.33 (95% confidence interval -0.79, 0.14), Z=1.39 (p=0.16)]. Programmes with more than 4 sets per session favoured small-sided games [effect size=0.53 (95% confidence interval -0.52, 1.58), Z=0.98 (p=0.33)] with only a trivial difference between those with 4, or fewer, sets [effect size=-0.13 (95% confidence interval -0.52, 0.26), Z=0.65 (p=0.52)]. Conclusions Small-sided games are as effective as conventional endurance training for increasing aerobic endurance performance in male youth soccer players. This is important for practitioners as it means that small-sided games can allow both endurance and skills training to be carried out simultaneously, thus providing a more efficient training stimulus. Small-sided games offer the same benefits as conventional endurance training with two sessions per week, with4 sets of 4 min of activity, interspersed with recovery periods of 3min, recommended in this population.
We explore the production and escape of ionizing photons in young galaxies by investigating the ultraviolet and optical emission-line properties of models of ionization-bounded and density-bounded H II regions, active-galactic-nucleus (AGN) narrow-line regions, and radiative shocks computed all using the same physically consistent description of element abundances and depletion on to dust grains down to very low metallicities. We compare these models with a reference sample of metal-poor star-forming galaxies and Lyman-continuum (LyC) leakers at various redshifts, which allows the simultaneous exploration of more spectral diagnostics than typically available at once for individual subsamples. We confirm that current single- and binary-star population synthesis models do not produce hard-enough radiation to account for the high-ionization emission of the most metal-poor galaxies. Introducing either an AGN or radiative-shock component brings models into agreement with observations. A published model including X-ray binaries is an attractive alternative to reproduce the observed rise in He II lambda 4686/H beta ratio with decreasing oxygen abundance in metal-poor star-forming galaxies, but not the high observed He II lambda 4686/H beta ratios of galaxies with large EW(H beta). A source of harder ionizing radiation appears to be required in these extreme objects, such as an AGN or radiative-shock component, perhaps linked to an initial-mass-function bias towards massive stars at low metallicity. This would also account for the surprisingly high [O I]/[O III] ratios of confirmed LyC leakers relative to ionization-bounded models. We find no simple by-eye diagnostic of the nature of ionizing sources and the escape of LyC photon, which require proper simultaneous fits of several lines to be discriminated against.
Biochar is being discussed as a soil amendment to improve soil fertility and mitigate climate change. While biochar interactions with soil microbial biota have been frequently studied, interactions with soil mesofauna are understudied. We here present an experiment in which we tested if the collembolan Folsomia candida I) can transport biochar particles, II) if yes, how far the particles are distributed within 10 days, and III) if it shows a preference among biochars made from different feedstocks, i.e. pine wood, pine bark and spelt husks. In general, biochar particles based on pine bark and pine wood were consistently distributed significantly more than those made of spelt husks, but all types were transported more than 4cm within 10 days. Additionally, we provide evidence that biochar particles can become readily attached to the cuticle of collembolans and hence be transported, potentially even over large distances. Our study shows that the soil mesofauna can indeed act as a vector for the transport of biochar particles and show clear preferences depending on the respective feedstock, which would need to be studied in more detail in the future.
Biochar is being discussed as a soil amendment to improve soil fertility and mitigate climate change. While biochar interactions with soil microbial biota have been frequently studied, interactions with soil mesofauna are understudied. We here present an experiment in which we tested if the collembolan Folsomia candida I) can transport biochar particles, II) if yes, how far the particles are distributed within 10 days, and III) if it shows a preference among biochars made from different feedstocks, i.e. pine wood, pine bark and spelt husks. In general, biochar particles based on pine bark and pine wood were consistently distributed significantly more than those made of spelt husks, but all types were transported more than 4cm within 10 days. Additionally, we provide evidence that biochar particles can become readily attached to the cuticle of collembolans and hence be transported, potentially even over large distances. Our study shows that the soil mesofauna can indeed act as a vector for the transport of biochar particles and show clear preferences depending on the respective feedstock, which would need to be studied in more detail in the future.
Obligate human pathogenic Neisseria gonorrhoeae are the second most frequent bacterial cause of sexually transmitted diseases. These bacteria invade different mucosal tissues and occasionally disseminate into the bloodstream. Invasion into epithelial cells requires the activation of host cell receptors by the formation of ceramide-rich platforms. Here, we investigated the role of sphingosine in the invasion and intracellular survival of gonococci. Sphingosine exhibited an anti-gonococcal activity in vitro. We used specific sphingosine analogs and click chemistry to visualize sphingosine in infected cells. Sphingosine localized to the membrane of intracellular gonococci. Inhibitor studies and the application of a sphingosine derivative indicated that increased sphingosine levels reduced the intracellular survival of gonococci. We demonstrate here, that sphingosine can target intracellular bacteria and may therefore exert a direct bactericidal effect inside cells.
The early Cretaceous Koegel Fontein intrusive complex is situated near the Atlantic coast in South Africa, about 350 km northwest of Cape Town. The complex comprises felsic units of granite and syenite with compositionally related dykes, and a single intrusive plug of diorite. Existing zircon U-Pb ages of 144 +/- 2 Ma for the syenite and 133.9 +/- 1.3 Ma for the granite suggest that the emplacement of the complex took place over a period of about 10 My. This study provides additional and independent ages of the Koegel Fontein complex by Ar-40/Ar-39 dating to confirm the onset and duration of magmatism and better define the sequence of igneous units that comprise it. New laser step-heating Ar-40/Ar-3(9) ages on plagioclase and biotite from the main intrusive units in the complex are presented here, including samples previously dated by U-Pb dating. The Ar-40/Ar-39 ages for the granite and syenite units (131.1 +/- 0.9 Ma and 143.3 +/- 0.9, respectively) are in good agreement with the zircon U-Pb ages. Other units not previously dated include the Rooivleitjie alkaline granite (150.7 +/- 0.6 Ma), two quartz-porphyry dykes (143.0 +/- 0.9 and 139.4 +/- 1.7 Ma) and the Zout Rivier diorite plug (133.0 +/- 1.0 Ma). The new results confirm an early onset of magmatism at Koegel Fontein relative to that of the Etendeka Province some 1000 km to the north, which is consistent with the regional south-to-north propagation of South Atlantic rifting. The youngest Ar-40/Ar-3(9) ages at Koegel Fontein (134 to 131 Ma, Rietpoort Granite and 133 Ma, Zout Rivier diorite) correspond to the age of the first magnetic seafloor-spreading anomaly offshore, and we suggest that the longevity of Koegel Fontein magmatism relates to a superposition of pre-drift magmatism onshore and spreading-related magmatism as continental separation began.
Time-resolved crystallography reveals allosteric communication aligned with molecular breathing
(2019)
A comprehensive understanding of protein function demands correlating structure and dynamic changes. Using time-resolved serial synchrotron crystallography, we visualized half-of-the-sites reactivity and correlated molecular-breathing motions in the enzyme fluoroacetate dehalogenase. Eighteen time points from 30 milliseconds to 30 seconds cover four turnover cycles of the irreversible reaction. They reveal sequential substrate binding, covalent-intermediate formation, setup of a hydrolytic water molecule, and product release. Small structural changes of the protein mold and variations in the number and placement of water molecules accompany the various chemical steps of catalysis. Triggered by enzyme-ligand interactions, these repetitive changes in the protein framework’s dynamics and entropy constitute crucial components of the catalytic machinery.
Nowadays, structural health monitoring of critical infrastructures is considered as of primal importance especially for managing transport infrastructure however most current SHM methodologies are based on point-sensors that show various limitations relating to their spatial positioning capabilities, cost of development and measurement range. This publication describes the progress in the SENSKIN EC co-funded research project that is developing a dielectric-elastomer sensor, formed from a large highly extensible capacitance sensing membrane and is supported by an advanced micro-electronic circuitry, for monitoring transport infrastructure bridges. The sensor under development provides spatial measurements of strain in excess of 10%, while the sensing system is being designed to be easy to install, require low power in operation concepts, require simple signal processing, and have the ability to self-monitor and report. An appropriate wireless sensor network is also being designed and developed supported by local gateways for the required data collection and exploitation. SENSKIN also develops a Decision-Support-System (DSS) for proactive condition-based structural interventions under normal operating conditions and reactive emergency intervention following an extreme event. The latter is supported by a life-cycle-costing (LCC) and life-cycle-assessment (LCA) module responsible for the total internal and external costs for the identified bridge rehabilitation, analysis of options, yielding figures for the assessment of the economic implications of the bridge rehabilitation work and the environmental impacts of the bridge rehabilitation options and of the associated secondary effects respectively. The overall monitoring system will be evaluated and benchmarked on actual bridges of Egnatia Highway (Greece) and Bosporus Bridge (Turkey).
Background: The pathophysiology behind the subacute but persistent hypercoagulable state after traumatic brain injury (TBI) is poorly understood but contributes to morbidity induced by venous thromboembolism. Because platelets and their microvesicles have been hypothesized to play a role in post-traumatic hypercoagulability, administration of commonly used agents may ameliorate this coagulability. We hypothesized that utilization of aspirin, ketorolac, amitriptyline, unfractionated heparin, or enoxaparin would modulate the platelet aggregation response after TBI. Methods: Concussive TBI was induced by weight drop. Mice were then randomized to receive aspirin, ketorolac, amitriptyline, heparin, enoxaparin, or saline control at 2 and 8 h after TBI. Mice were sacrificed at 6 or 24 h after injury to determine coagulability by rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM), platelet function testing with impedance aggregometry, and microvesicle enumeration. Platelet sphingolipid metabolites were analyzed by mass spectrometry. Results: ROTEM demonstrated increased platelet contribution to maximum clot firmness at 6 h after TBI in mice that received aspirin or amitriptyline, but this did not persist at 24 h. By contrast, adenosine diphosphate- and arachidonic acid-induced platelet aggregation at 6 h was significantly lower in mice receiving ketorolac, aspirin, and amitriptyline compared with mice receiving saline at 6 h after injury and only arachidonic acid-initiated platelet aggregation was decreased by aspirin at 24 h. There were no differences in microvesicle production at either time point. Platelet sphingosine-1-phosphate levels were decreased at 6 h in the group receiving amitriptyline and increased at 24 h along with platelet ceramide levels at 24 h in the amitriptyline group. Conclusion: After TBI, amitriptyline decreased platelet aggregability and increased contribution to clot in a manner similar to aspirin. The amitriptyline effects on platelet function and sphingolipid metabolites may represent a possible role of the acid sphingomyelinase in the hypercoagulability observed after injury. In addition, inhibition of platelet reactivity may be an underappreciated benefit of low molecular weight heparins, such as enoxaparin. (C) 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in critically ill patients. Here, we employed the broad antibacterial effects of sphingosine to prevent VAP by developing a novel method of coating surfaces of endotracheal tubes with sphingosine and sphingosine analogs. Sphingosine and phytosphingosine coatings of endotracheal tubes prevent adherence and mediate killing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Staphylococcus aureus, even in biofilms. Most importantly, sphingosine-coating of endotracheal tubes also prevented P. aeruginosa and S. aureus pneumonia in vivo. Coating of the tubes with sphingosine was stable, without obvious side effects on tracheal epithelial cells and did not induce inflammation. In summary, we describe a novel method to coat plastic surfaces and provide evidence for the application of sphingosine and phytosphingosine as novel antimicrobial coatings to prevent bacterial adherence and induce killing of pathogens on the surface of endotracheal tubes with potential to prevent biofilm formation and VAP.Key messagesNovel dip-coating method to coat plastic surfaces with lipids.Sphingosine and phytosphingosine as novel antimicrobial coatings on plastic surface.Sphingosine coatings of endotracheal tubes prevent bacterial adherence and biofilms.Sphingosine coatings of endotracheal tubes induce killing of pathogens.Sphingosine coatings of endotracheal tubes ventilator-associated pneumonia.
Local probes of the electronic ground state are essential for understanding hydrogen bonding in aqueous environments. When tuned to the dissociative core-excited state at the O1s pre-edge of water, resonant inelastic X-ray scattering back to the electronic ground state exhibits a long vibrational progression due to ultrafast nuclear dynamics. We show how the coherent evolution of the OH bonds around the core-excited oxygen provides access to high vibrational levels in liquid water. The OH bonds stretch into the long-range part of the potential energy curve, which makes the X-ray probe more sensitive than infra-red spectroscopy to the local environment. We exploit this property to effectively probe hydrogen bond strength via the distribution of intramolecular OH potentials derived from measurements. In contrast, the dynamical splitting in the spectral feature of the lowest valence-excited state arises from the short-range part of the OH potential curve and is rather insensitive to hydrogen bonding.
The progress of science is tied to the standardization of measurements, instruments, and data. This is especially true in the Big Data age, where analyzing large data volumes critically hinges on the data being standardized. Accordingly, the lack of community-sanctioned data standards in paleoclimatology has largely precluded the benefits of Big Data advances in the field. Building upon recent efforts to standardize the format and terminology of paleoclimate data, this article describes the Paleoclimate Community reporTing Standard (PaCTS), a crowdsourced reporting standard for such data. PaCTS captures which information should be included when reporting paleoclimate data, with the goal of maximizing the reuse value of paleoclimate data sets, particularly for synthesis work and comparison to climate model simulations. Initiated by the LinkedEarth project, the process to elicit a reporting standard involved an international workshop in 2016, various forms of digital community engagement over the next few years, and grassroots working groups. Participants in this process identified important properties across paleoclimate archives, in addition to the reporting of uncertainties and chronologies; they also identified archive-specific properties and distinguished reporting standards for new versus legacy data sets. This work shows that at least 135 respondents overwhelmingly support a drastic increase in the amount of metadata accompanying paleoclimate data sets. Since such goals are at odds with present practices, we discuss a transparent path toward implementing or revising these recommendations in the near future, using both bottom-up and top-down approaches.
Marine snow aggregates represent heterogeneous agglomerates of dead and living organic matter. Composition is decisive for their sinking rates, and thereby for carbon flux to the deep sea. For oligotrophic oceans, information on aggregate composition is particularly sparse. To address this, the taxonomic composition of aggregates collected from the subtropical and oligotrophic Sargasso Sea (Atlantic Ocean) was characterized by 16S and 18S rRNA gene sequencing. Taxonomy assignment was aided by a collection of the contemporary plankton community consisting of 75 morphologically and genetically identified plankton specimens. The diverse rRNA gene reads of marine snow aggregates, not considering Trichodesmium puffs, were dominated by copepods (52%), cnidarians (21%), radiolarians (11%), and alveolates (8%), with sporadic contributions by cyanobacteria, suggesting a different aggregate composition than in eutrophic regions. Composition linked significantly with sampling location but not to any measured environmental parameters or plankton biomass composition. Nevertheless, indicator and network analyses identified key roles of a few rare taxa. This points to complex regulation of aggregate composition, conceivably affected by the environment and plankton characteristics. The extent to which this has implications for particle densities, and consequently for sinking rates and carbon sequestration in oligotrophic waters, needs further interrogation.
Biological responses to climate change have been widely documented across taxa and regions, but it remains unclear whether species are maintaining a good match between phenotype and environment, i.e. whether observed trait changes are adaptive. Here we reviewed 10,090 abstracts and extracted data from 71 studies reported in 58 relevant publications, to assess quantitatively whether phenotypic trait changes associated with climate change are adaptive in animals. A meta-analysis focussing on birds, the taxon best represented in our dataset, suggests that global warming has not systematically affected morphological traits, but has advanced phenological traits. We demonstrate that these advances are adaptive for some species, but imperfect as evidenced by the observed consistent selection for earlier timing. Application of a theoretical model indicates that the evolutionary load imposed by incomplete adaptive responses to ongoing climate change may already be threatening the persistence of species.
Background: Population-specificity of exploratory dietary patterns limits their generalizability in investigations with type 2 diabetes incidence.
Objective: The aim of this study was to derive country-specific exploratory dietary patterns, investigate their association with type 2 diabetes incidence, and replicate diabetes-associated dietary patterns in other countries.
Methods: Dietary intake data were used, assessed by country-specific questionnaires at baseline of 11,183 incident diabetes cases and 14,694 subcohort members (mean age 52.9 y) from 8 countries, nested within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study (mean follow-up time 6.9 y). Exploratory dietary patterns were derived by principal component analysis. HRs for incident type 2 diabetes were calculated by Prentice-weighted Cox proportional hazard regression models. Diabetes-associated dietary patterns were simplified or replicated to be applicable in other countries. A meta-analysis across all countries evaluated the generalizability of the diabetes-association.
Results: Two dietary patterns per country/UK-center, of which overall 3 dietary patterns were diabetes-associated, were identified. A risk-lowering French dietary pattern was not confirmed across other countries: pooled HRFrance per 1 SD: 1.00; 95% CI: 0.90, 1.10. Risk-increasing dietary patterns, derived in Spain and UK-Norfolk, were confirmed, but only the latter statistically significantly: HRSpain: 1.09; 95% CI: 0.97, 1.22 and HRUK-Norfolk: 1.12; 95% CI: 1.04, 1.20. Respectively, this dietary pattern was characterized by relatively high intakes of potatoes, processed meat, vegetable oils, sugar, cake and cookies, and tea. Conclusions: Only few country/center-specific dietary patterns (3 of 18) were statistically significantly associated with diabetes incidence in this multicountry European study population. One pattern, whose association with diabetes was confirmed across other countries, showed overlaps in the food groups potatoes and processed meat with identified diabetes-associated dietary patterns from other studies. The study demonstrates that replication of associations of exploratory patterns with health outcomes is feasible and a necessary step to overcome population-specificity in associations from such analyses.
The extragalactic background light (EBL), a diffuse photon field in the optical and infrared range, is a record of radiative processes over the universe?s history. Spectral measurements of blazars at very high energies (>100 GeV) enable the reconstruction of the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the EBL, as the blazar spectra are modified by redshift- and energy-dependent interactions of the gamma-ray photons with the EBL. The spectra of 14 VERITAS-detected blazars are included in a new measurement of the EBL SED that is independent of EBL SED models. The resulting SED covers an EBL wavelength range of 0.56?56 ?m, and is in good agreement with lower limits obtained by assuming that the EBL is entirely due to radiation from cataloged galaxies.
The angular size of a star is a critical factor in determining its basic properties1. Direct measurement of stellar angular diameters is difficult: at interstellar distances stars are generally too small to resolve by any individual imaging telescope. This fundamental limitation can be overcome by studying the diffraction pattern in the shadow cast when an asteroid occults a star2, but only when the photometric uncertainty is smaller than the noise added by atmospheric scintillation3. Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes used for particle astrophysics observations have not generally been exploited for optical astronomy due to the modest optical quality of the mirror surface. However, their large mirror area makes them well suited for such high-time-resolution precision photometry measurements4. Here we report two occultations of stars observed by the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS)5 Cherenkov telescopes with millisecond sampling, from which we are able to provide a direct measurement of the occulted stars’ angular diameter at the ≤0.1 mas scale. This is a resolution never achieved before with optical measurements and represents an order of magnitude improvement over the equivalent lunar occultation method6. We compare the resulting stellar radius with empirically derived estimates from temperature and brightness measurements, confirming the latter can be biased for stars with ambiguous stellar classifications.
Permafrost thaw subjects previously frozen organic carbon (OC) to microbial decomposition, generating the greenhouse gases (GHG) carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) and fueling a positive climate feedback. Over one quarter of permafrost OC is stored in deep, ice-rich Pleistocene-aged yedoma permafrost deposits. We used a combination of anaerobic incubations, microbial sequencing, and ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry to show yedoma OC biolability increases with depth along a 12-m yedoma profile. In incubations at 3 degrees C and 13 degrees C, GHG production per unit OC at 12-versus 1.3-m depth was 4.6 and 20.5 times greater, respectively. Bacterial diversity decreased with depth and we detected methanogens at all our sampled depths, suggesting that in situ microbial communities are equipped to metabolize thawed OC into CH4. We concurrently observed an increase in the relative abundance of reduced, saturated OC compounds, which corresponded to high proportions of C mineralization and positively correlated with anaerobic GHG production potentials and higher proportions of OC being mineralized as CH4. Taking into account the higher global warming potential (GWP) of CH4 compared to CO2, thawed yedoma sediments in our study had 2 times higher GWP at 12-versus 9.0-m depth at 3 degrees C and 15 times higher GWP at 13 degrees C. Considering that yedoma is vulnerable to processes that thaw deep OC, our findings imply that it is important to account for this increasing GHG production and GWP with depth to better understand the disproportionate impact of yedoma on the magnitude of the permafrost carbon feedback.
Large earthquakes initiate chains of surface processes that last much longer than the brief moments of strong shaking. Most moderate‐ and large‐magnitude earthquakes trigger landslides, ranging from small failures in the soil cover to massive, devastating rock avalanches. Some landslides dam rivers and impound lakes, which can collapse days to centuries later, and flood mountain valleys for hundreds of kilometers downstream. Landslide deposits on slopes can remobilize during heavy rainfall and evolve into debris flows. Cracks and fractures can form and widen on mountain crests and flanks, promoting increased frequency of landslides that lasts for decades. More gradual impacts involve the flushing of excess debris downstream by rivers, which can generate bank erosion and floodplain accretion as well as channel avulsions that affect flooding frequency, settlements, ecosystems, and infrastructure. Ultimately, earthquake sequences and their geomorphic consequences alter mountain landscapes over both human and geologic time scales. Two recent events have attracted intense research into earthquake‐induced landslides and their consequences: the magnitude M 7.6 Chi‐Chi, Taiwan earthquake of 1999, and the M 7.9 Wenchuan, China earthquake of 2008. Using data and insights from these and several other earthquakes, we analyze how such events initiate processes that change mountain landscapes, highlight research gaps, and suggest pathways toward a more complete understanding of the seismic effects on the Earth's surface.
Global change has complex eco-evolutionary consequences for organisms and ecosystems, but related concepts (e.g., novel ecosystems) do not cover their full range. Here we propose an umbrella concept of "ecological novelty" comprising (1) a site-specific and (2) an organism-centered, eco-evolutionary perspective. Under this umbrella, complementary options for studying and communicating effects of global change on organisms, ecosystems, and landscapes can be included in a toolbox. This allows researchers to address ecological novelty from different perspectives, e.g., by defining it based on (a) categorical or continuous measures, (b) reference conditions related to sites or organisms, and (c) types of human activities. We suggest striving for a descriptive, non-normative usage of the term "ecological novelty" in science. Normative evaluations and decisions about conservation policies or management are important, but require additional societal processes and engagement with multiple stakeholders.
Strong light-matter coupling can re-arrange the exciton energies in organic semiconductors. Here, we exploit strong coupling by embedding a fullerene-free organic solar cell (OSC) photo-active layer into an optical microcavity, leading to the formation of polariton peaks and a red-shift of the optical gap. At the same time, the open-circuit voltage of the device remains unaffected. This leads to reduced photon energy losses for the low-energy polaritons and a steepening of the absorption edge. While strong coupling reduces the optical gap, the energy of the charge-transfer state is not affected for large driving force donor-acceptor systems. Interestingly, this implies that strong coupling can be exploited in OSCs to reduce the driving force for electron transfer, without chemical or microstructural modifications of the photoactive layer. Our work demonstrates that the processes determining voltage losses in OSCs can now be tuned, and reduced to unprecedented values, simply by manipulating the device architecture.
All-in-One "Schizophrenic" self-assembly of orthogonally tuned thermoresponsive diblock copolymers
(2019)
Smart, fully orthogonal switching was realized in a highly biocompatible diblock copolymer system with variable trigger-induced aqueous self-assembly. The polymers are composed of nonionic and zwitterionic blocks featuring lower and upper critical solution temperatures (LCSTs and UCSTs). In the system investigated, diblock copolymers from poly(N-isopropyl methacrylamide) (PNIPMAM) and a poly(sulfobetaine methacrylamide), systematic variation of the molar mass of the latter block allowed for shifting the UCST of the latter above the LCST of the PNIPMAM block in a salt-free condition. Thus, successive thermal switching results in "schizophrenic" micellization, in which the roles of the hydrophobic core block and the hydrophilic shell block are interchanged depending on the temperature. Furthermore, by virtue of the strong electrolyte-sensitivity of the zwitterionic polysulfobetaine block, we succeeded to shift its UCST below the LCST of the PNIPMAM block by adding small amounts of an electrolyte, thus inverting the pathway of switching. This superimposed orthogonal switching by electrolyte addition enabled us to control the switching scenarios between the two types of micelles (i) via an insoluble state, if the LCST-type cloud point is below the UCST-type cloud point, which is the case at low salt concentrations or (ii) via a molecularly dissolved state, if the LCST-type cloud point is above the UCST-type cloud point, which is the case at high salt concentrations. Systematic variation of the block lengths allowed for verifying the anticipated behavior and identifying the molecular architecture needed. The versatile and tunable self-assembly offers manifold opportunities, for example, for smart emulsifiers or for sophisticated carrier systems.
River ecosystems receive and process vast quantities of terrestrial organic carbon, the fate of which depends strongly on microbial activity. Variation in and controls of processing rates, however, are poorly characterized at the global scale. In response, we used a peer-sourced research network and a highly standardized carbon processing assay to conduct a global-scale field experiment in greater than 1000 river and riparian sites. We found that Earth’s biomes have distinct carbon processing signatures. Slow processing is evident across latitudes, whereas rapid rates are restricted to lower latitudes. Both the mean rate and variability decline with latitude, suggesting temperature constraints toward the poles and greater roles for other environmental drivers (e.g., nutrient loading) toward the equator. These results and data set the stage for unprecedented “next-generation biomonitoring” by establishing baselines to help quantify environmental impacts to the functioning of ecosystems at a global scale.
An understanding of the factors limiting the open-circuit voltage (V-oc) and related photon energy loss mechanisms is critical to increase the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of small-molecule organic solar cells (OSCs), especially those with near-infrared (NIR) absorbers. In this work, two NIR boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) molecules are characterized for application in planar (PHJ) and bulk (BHJ) heterojunction OSCs. When two H atoms are substituted by F atoms on the peripheral phenyl rings of the molecules, the molecular aggregation type in the thin film changes from the H-type to J-type. For PHJ devices, the nonradiative voltage loss of 0.35 V in the J-aggregated BODIPY is lower than that of 0.49 V in the H-aggregated device. In BHJ devices with a nonradiative voltage loss of 0.35 V, a PCE of 5.5% is achieved with an external quantum efficiency (EQE) maximum of 68% at 700 nm.
Intermolecular charge-transfer states at the interface between electron donating (D) and accepting (A) materials are crucial for the operation of organic solar cells but can also be exploited for organic light-emitting diodes(1,2). Non-radiative charge-transfer state decay is dominant in state-of-the-art D-A-based organic solar cells and is responsible for large voltage losses and relatively low power-conversion efficiencies as well as electroluminescence external quantum yields in the 0.01-0.0001% range(3,4). In contrast, the electroluminescence external quantum yield reaches up to 16% in D-A-based organic light-emitting diodes(5-7). Here, we show that proper control of charge-transfer state properties allows simultaneous occurrence of a high photovoltaic and emission quantum yield within a single, visible-light-emitting D-A system. This leads to ultralow-emission turn-on voltages as well as significantly reduced voltage losses upon solar illumination. These results unify the description of the electro-optical properties of charge-transfer states in organic optoelectronic devices and foster the use of organic D-A blends in energy conversion applications involving visible and ultraviolet photons(8-11).
Plain Language Summary Radiation belts of the Earth, which are the zones of charged energetic particles trapped by the geomagnetic field, comprise enormous and dynamic systems. While the inner radiation belt, composed mainly of high-energy protons, is relatively stable, the outer belt, filled with energetic electrons, is highly variable and depends substantially on solar activity. Hence, extended reliable observations and the improved models of the electron intensities in the outer belt depending on solar wind parameters are necessary for prediction of their dynamics. The Cluster mission has been measuring electron flux intensities in the radiation belts since its launch in 2000, thus providing a huge dataset that can be used for radiation belts analysis. Using 16 years of electron measurements by the Cluster mission corrected for background contamination, we derived a uniform linear-logarithmic dependence of electron fluxes in the outer belt on the solar wind dynamic pressure.
Ring current electrons (1–100 keV) have received significant attention in recent decades, but many questions regarding their major transport and loss mechanisms remain open. In this study, we use the four‐dimensional Versatile Electron Radiation Belt code to model the enhancement of phase space density that occurred during the 17 March 2013 storm. Our model includes global convection, radial diffusion, and scattering into the Earth's atmosphere driven by whistler‐mode hiss and chorus waves. We study the sensitivity of the model to the boundary conditions, global electric field, the electric field associated with subauroral polarization streams, electron loss rates, and radial diffusion coefficients. The results of the code are almost insensitive to the model parameters above 4.5 RERE, which indicates that the general dynamics of the electrons between 4.5 RE and the geostationary orbit can be explained by global convection. We found that the major discrepancies between the model and data can stem from the inaccurate electric field model and uncertainties in lifetimes. We show that additional mechanisms that are responsible for radial transport are required to explain the dynamics of ≥40‐keV electrons, and the inclusion of the radial diffusion rates that are typically assumed in radiation belt studies leads to a better agreement with the data. The overall effect of subauroral polarization streams on the electron phase space density profiles seems to be smaller than the uncertainties in other input parameters. This study is an initial step toward understanding the dynamics of these particles inside the geostationary orbit.
Pitch Angle Scattering of Sub-MeV Relativistic Electrons by Electromagnetic Ion Cyclotron Waves
(2019)
Electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves have long been considered to be a significant loss mechanism for relativistic electrons. This has most often been attributed to resonant interactions with the highest amplitude waves. But recent observations have suggested that the dominant energy of electrons precipitated to the atmosphere may often be relatively low, less than 1 MeV, whereas the minimum resonant energy of the highest amplitude waves is often greater than 2 MeV. Here we use relativistic electron test particle simulations in the wavefields of a hybrid code simulation of EMIC waves in dipole geometry in order to show that significant pitch angle scattering can occur due to interaction with low-amplitude short-wavelength EMIC waves. In the case we examined, these waves are in the H band (at frequencies above the He+ gyrofrequency), even though the highest amplitude waves were in the He band frequency range (below the He+ gyrofrequency). We also present wave power distributions for 29 EMIC simulations in straight magnetic field line geometry that show that the high wave number portion of the spectrum is in every case mostly due to the H band waves. Though He band waves are often associated with relativistic electron precipitation, it is possible that the He band waves do not directly scatter the sub-megaelectron volts (sub-MeV) electrons, but that the presence of He band waves is associated with high plasma density which lowers the minimum resonant energy so that these electrons can more easily resonate with the H band waves.
Right on track?
(2019)
Satellite telemetry is an increasingly utilized technology in wildlife research, and current devices can track individual animal movements at unprecedented spatial and temporal resolutions. However, as we enter the golden age of satellite telemetry, we need an in-depth understanding of the main technological, species-specific and environmental factors that determine the success and failure of satellite tracking devices across species and habitats. Here, we assess the relative influence of such factors on the ability of satellite telemetry units to provide the expected amount and quality of data by analyzing data from over 3,000 devices deployed on 62 terrestrial species in 167 projects worldwide. We evaluate the success rate in obtaining GPS fixes as well as in transferring these fixes to the user and we evaluate failure rates. Average fix success and data transfer rates were high and were generally better predicted by species and unit characteristics, while environmental characteristics influenced the variability of performance. However, 48% of the unit deployments ended prematurely, half of them due to technical failure. Nonetheless, this study shows that the performance of satellite telemetry applications has shown improvements over time, and based on our findings, we provide further recommendations for both users and manufacturers.
The blazar Mrk 501 (z = 0.034) was observed at very-high-energy (VHE, E greater than or similar to 100 GeV) gamma-ray wavelengths during a bright flare on the night of 2014 June 23-24 (MJD 56832) with the H.E.S.S. phase-II array of Cherenkov telescopes. Data taken that night by H.E.S.S. at large zenith angle reveal an exceptional number of gamma-ray photons at multi-TeV energies, with rapid flux variability and an energy coverage extending significantly up to 20 TeV. This data set is used to constrain Lorentz invariance violation (LIV) using two independent channels: a temporal approach considers the possibility of an energy dependence in the arrival time of gamma-rays, whereas a spectral approach considers the possibility of modifications to the interaction of VHE gamma-rays with extragalactic background light (EBL) photons. The non-detection of energy-dependent time delays and the non-observation of deviations between the measured spectrum and that of a supposed power-law intrinsic spectrum with standard EBL attenuation are used independently to derive strong constraints on the energy scale of LIV (E-QG) in the subluminal scenario for linear and quadratic perturbations in the dispersion relation of photons. For the case of linear perturbations, the 95% confidence level limits obtained are E-QG,E-1 > 3.6 x 10(17) GeV using the temporal approach and E-QG,E-1 > 2.6 x 10(19) GeV using the spectral approach. For the case of quadratic perturbations, the limits obtained are E-QG,E-2 > 8.5 x 10(10) GeV using the temporal approach and E-QG,E-2 > 7.8 x 10(11) GeV using the spectral approach.
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are brief flashes of gamma-rays and are considered to be the most energetic explosive phenomena in the Universe(1). The emission from GRBs comprises a short (typically tens of seconds) and bright prompt emission, followed by a much longer afterglow phase. During the afterglow phase, the shocked outflow-produced by the interaction between the ejected matter and the circumburst medium-slows down, and a gradual decrease in brightness is observed(2). GRBs typically emit most of their energy via.-rays with energies in the kiloelectronvolt-to-megaelectronvolt range, but a few photons with energies of tens of gigaelectronvolts have been detected by space-based instruments(3). However, the origins of such high-energy (above one gigaelectronvolt) photons and the presence of very-high-energy (more than 100 gigaelectronvolts) emission have remained elusive(4). Here we report observations of very-high-energy emission in the bright GRB 180720B deep in the GRB afterglow-ten hours after the end of the prompt emission phase, when the X-ray flux had already decayed by four orders of magnitude. Two possible explanations exist for the observed radiation: inverse Compton emission and synchrotron emission of ultrarelativistic electrons. Our observations show that the energy fluxes in the X-ray and gamma-ray range and their photon indices remain comparable to each other throughout the afterglow. This discovery places distinct constraints on the GRB environment for both emission mechanisms, with the inverse Compton explanation alleviating the particle energy requirements for the emission observed at late times. The late timing of this detection has consequences for the future observations of GRBs at the highest energies.
Purpose: Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) appears in up to 30% of patients suffering from postoperative delirium (POD). Both are associated with higher mortality and postoperative complications, prolonged hospital stays, and increased costs. Multi-modal models with pre-admission risk reduction counselling, perioperative monitoring, and training of multidisciplinary patient care providers have been shown to decrease the prevalence of both. The aim of our study is to understand how far those measures are known and implemented in routine care and to detect potential gaps in the current practice regarding risk communication and information flow between involved caregivers for patients at risk for POD/POCD. Patients and Methods: As part of a multicenter study, seven semi-structured focus group (FG) discussions with nurses and physicians from tertiary care hospitals (surgery, anesthesiology, and orthopedics, n=31) and general practitioners (GPs) in private practice (n=7) were performed. Transcribed discussions were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: POD is present above all in the daily work of nurses, whereas physicians do not perceive it as a relevant problem. Physicians report that no regular risk assessment or risk communication was performed prior to elective surgery. Information about POD often gets lost during hand-offs and is not regularly reported in discharge letters. Thus, persisting cognitive dysfunction is often missed. The importance of standardized documentation and continuous education concerning risks, screening, and treatment was emphasized. The often-suggested pre-OP medication adjustment was seen as less important; in contrast, avoiding withdrawal was regarded as far more important. Conclusion: Altogether, it seems that standards and available best practice concepts are rarely implemented. In contrast to physicians, nurses are highly aware of delirium and ask for standardized procedures and more responsibility. Therefore, raising awareness regarding risks, screening tools, and effective preventive measures for POD/POCD seems an urgent goal. Nurses should have a central role in coordination and care of POD to prevent the risk for POCD.
The fall into the Oligocene icehouse is marked by a steady decline in global temperature with punctuated cooling at the Eocene-Oligocene transition, both of which are well documented in the marine realm. However, the chronology and mechanisms of cooling on land remain unclear. Here, we use clumped isotope thermometry on northeastern Tibetan continental carbonates to reconstruct a detailed Paleogene surface temperature record for the Asian continental interior, and correlate this to an enhanced pollen data set. Our results show two successive dramatic (>9 degrees C) temperature drops, at 37 Ma and at 33.5 Ma. These large-magnitude decreases in continental temperatures can only be explained by a combination of both regional cooling and shifts of the rainy season to cooler months, which we interpret to reflect a decline of monsoonal intensity. Our results suggest that the response of Asian surface temperatures and monsoonal rainfall to the steady decline of atmospheric CO2 and global temperature through the late Eocene was nonlinear and occurred in two steps separated by a period of climatic instability. Our results support the onset of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current coeval to the Oligocene isotope event 1 (Oi-1) glaciation at 33.5 Ma, reshaping the distribution of surface heat worldwide; however, the origin of the 37 Ma cooling event remains less clear.
A catalog of genetic loci associated with kidney function from analyses of a million individuals
(2019)
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is responsible for a public health burden with multi-systemic complications. Through transancestry meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and independent replication (n = 1,046,070), we identified 264 associated loci (166 new). Of these,147 were likely to be relevant for kidney function on the basis of associations with the alternative kidney function marker blood urea nitrogen (n = 416,178). Pathway and enrichment analyses, including mouse models with renal phenotypes, support the kidney as the main target organ. A genetic risk score for lower eGFR was associated with clinically diagnosed CKD in 452,264 independent individuals. Colocalization analyses of associations with eGFR among 783,978 European-ancestry individuals and gene expression across 46 human tissues, including tubulo-interstitial and glomerular kidney compartments, identified 17 genes differentially expressed in kidney. Fine-mapping highlighted missense driver variants in 11 genes and kidney-specific regulatory variants. These results provide a comprehensive priority list of molecular targets for translational research.
Context. We present a detailed view of the pulsar wind nebula (PWN) HESS J1825-137. We aim to constrain the mechanisms dominating the particle transport within the nebula, accounting for its anomalously large size and spectral characteristics. Aims. The nebula was studied using a deep exposure from over 12 years of H.E.S.S. I operation, together with data from H.E.S.S. II that improve the low-energy sensitivity. Enhanced energy-dependent morphological and spatially resolved spectral analyses probe the very high energy (VHE, E > 0.1 TeV) gamma-ray properties of the nebula. Methods. The nebula emission is revealed to extend out to 1.5 degrees from the pulsar, similar to 1.5 times farther than previously seen, making HESS J1825-137, with an intrinsic diameter of similar to 100 pc, potentially the largest gamma-ray PWN currently known. Characterising the strongly energy-dependent morphology of the nebula enables us to constrain the particle transport mechanisms. A dependence of the nebula extent with energy of R proportional to E alpha with alpha = -0.29 +/- 0.04(stat) +/- 0.05(sys) disfavours a pure diffusion scenario for particle transport within the nebula. The total gamma-ray flux of the nebula above 1 TeV is found to be (1.12 +/- 0.03(stat) +/- 0.25(sys)) +/- 10(-11) cm(-2) s(-1), corresponding to similar to 64% of the flux of the Crab nebula. Results. HESS J1825-137 is a PWN with clearly energy-dependent morphology at VHE gamma-ray energies. This source is used as a laboratory to investigate particle transport within intermediate-age PWNe. Based on deep observations of this highly spatially extended PWN, we produce a spectral map of the region that provides insights into the spectral variation within the nebula.
Context. Pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) represent the most prominent population of Galactic very-high-energy gamma-ray sources and are thought to be an efficient source of leptonic cosmic rays. Vela X is a nearby middle-aged PWN, which shows bright X-ray and TeV gamma-ray emission towards an elongated structure called the cocoon. Aims. Since TeV emission is likely inverse-Compton emission of electrons, predominantly from interactions with the cosmic microwave background, while X-ray emission is synchrotron radiation of the same electrons, we aim to derive the properties of the relativistic particles and of magnetic fields with minimal modelling. Methods. We used data from the Suzaku XIS to derive the spectra from three compact regions in Vela X covering distances from 0.3 to 4 pc from the pulsar along the cocoon. We obtained gamma-ray spectra of the same regions from H.E.S.S. observations and fitted a radiative model to the multi-wavelength spectra. Results. The TeV electron spectra and magnetic field strengths are consistent within the uncertainties for the three regions, with energy densities of the order 10(-12) erg cm(-3). The data indicate the presence of a cutoff in the electron spectrum at energies of similar to 100 TeV and a magnetic field strength of similar to 6 mu G. Constraints on the presence of turbulent magnetic fields are weak. Conclusions. The pressure of TeV electrons and magnetic fields in the cocoon is dynamically negligible, requiring the presence of another dominant pressure component to balance the pulsar wind at the termination shock. Sub-TeV electrons cannot completely account for the missing pressure, which may be provided either by relativistic ions or from mixing of the ejecta with the pulsar wind. The electron spectra are consistent with expectations from transport scenarios dominated either by advection via the reverse shock or by diffusion, but for the latter the role of radiative losses near the termination shock needs to be further investigated in the light of the measured cutoff energies. Constraints on turbulent magnetic fields and the shape of the electron cutoff can be improved by spectral measurements in the energy range greater than or similar to 10 keV.
Young core-collapse supernovae with dense-wind progenitors may be able to accelerate cosmic-ray hadrons beyond the knee of the cosmic-ray spectrum, and this may result in measurable gamma-ray emission. We searched for gamma-ray emission from ten super- novae observed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) within a year of the supernova event. Nine supernovae were observed serendipitously in the H.E.S.S. data collected between December 2003 and December 2014, with exposure times ranging from 1.4 to 53 h. In addition we observed SN 2016adj as a target of opportunity in February 2016 for 13 h. No significant gamma-ray emission has been detected for any of the objects, and upper limits on the >1 TeV gamma-ray flux of the order of similar to 10(-13) cm(-)(2)s(-1) are established, corresponding to upper limits on the luminosities in the range similar to 2 x 10(39) to similar to 1 x 10(42) erg s(-1). These values are used to place model-dependent constraints on the mass-loss rates of the progenitor stars, implying upper limits between similar to 2 x 10(-5) and similar to 2 x 10(-3) M-circle dot yr(-1) under reasonable assumptions on the particle acceleration parameters.
PKS 1830-211 is a known macrolensed quasar located at a redshift of z = 2.5. Its highenergy gamma-ray emission has been detected with the Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT) instrument and evidence for lensing was obtained by several authors from its high-energy data. Observations of PKS 1830-211 were taken with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) array of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes in 2014 August, following a flare alert by the Fermi-LAT Collaboration. The H.E.S.S observations were aimed at detecting a gamma-ray flare delayed by 20-27 d from the alert flare, as expected from observations at other wavelengths. More than 12 h of good-quality data were taken with an analysis threshold of similar to 67 GeV. The significance of a potential signal is computed as a function of the date and the average significance over the whole period. Data are compared to simultaneous observations by Fermi-LAT. No photon excess or significant signal is detected. An upper limit on PKS 1830-211 flux above 67 GeV is computed and compared to the extrapolation of the Fermi-LAT flare spectrum.
The flat spectrum radio quasar 3C 279 is known to exhibit pronounced variability in the high-energy (100MeV < E < 100 GeV) gamma-ray band, which is continuously monitored with Fermi-LAT. During two periods of high activity in April 2014 and June 2015 target-of-opportunity observations were undertaken with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) in the very-high-energy (VHE, E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray domain. While the observation in 2014 provides an upper limit, the observation in 2015 results in a signal with 8 : 7 sigma significance above an energy threshold of 66 GeV. No VHE variability was detected during the 2015 observations. The VHE photon spectrum is soft and described by a power-law index of 4.2 +/- 0.3. The H.E.S.S. data along with a detailed and contemporaneous multiwavelength data set provide constraints on the physical parameters of the emission region. The minimum distance of the emission region from the central black hole was estimated using two plausible geometries of the broad-line region and three potential intrinsic spectra. The emission region is confidently placed at r greater than or similar to 1 : 7 X 1017 cm from the black hole, that is beyond the assumed distance of the broad-line region. Time-dependent leptonic and lepto-hadronic one-zone models were used to describe the evolution of the 2015 flare. Neither model can fully reproduce the observations, despite testing various parameter sets. Furthermore, the H.E.S.S. data were used to derive constraints on Lorentz invariance violation given the large redshift of 3C 279.
Objectives
The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of a six-week in-season period of soccer training and games (congested period) on plasma volume variations (PV), hematological parameters, and physical fitness in elite players. In addition, we analyzed relationships between training load, hematological parameters and players’ physical fitness.
Methods
Eighteen elite players were evaluated before (T1) and after (T2) a six-week in-season period interspersed with 10 soccer matches. At T1 and T2, players performed the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test level 1 (YYIR1), the repeated shuttle sprint ability test (RSSA), the countermovement jump test (CMJ), and the squat jump test (SJ). In addition, PV and hematological parameters (erythrocytes [M/mm3], hematocrit [%], hemoglobin [g/dl], mean corpuscular volume [fl], mean corpuscular hemoglobin content [pg], and mean hemoglobin concentration [%]) were assessed. Daily ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) were monitored in order to quantify the internal training load.
Results
From T1 to T2, significant performance declines were found for the YYIR1 (p<0.001, effect size [ES] = 0.5), RSSA (p<0.01, ES = 0.6) and SJ tests (p< 0.046, ES = 0.7). However, no significant changes were found for the CMJ (p = 0.86, ES = 0.1). Post-exercise, RSSA blood lactate (p<0.012, ES = 0.2) and PV (p<0.01, ES = 0.7) increased significantly from T1 to T2. A significant decrease was found from T1 to T2 for the erythrocyte value (p<0.002, ES = 0.5) and the hemoglobin concentration (p<0.018, ES = 0.8). The hematocrit percentage rate was also significantly lower (p<0.001, ES = 0.6) at T2. The mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin content and the mean hemoglobin content values were not statistically different from T1 to T2. No significant relationships were detected between training load parameters and percentage changes of hematological parameters. However, a significant relationship was observed between training load and changes in RSSA performance (r = -0.60; p<0.003).
Conclusions
An intensive period of “congested match play” over 6 weeks significantly compromised players’ physical fitness. These changes were not related to hematological parameters, even though significant alterations were detected for selected measures.
Objectives
The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of a six-week in-season period of soccer training and games (congested period) on plasma volume variations (PV), hematological parameters, and physical fitness in elite players. In addition, we analyzed relationships between training load, hematological parameters and players’ physical fitness.
Methods
Eighteen elite players were evaluated before (T1) and after (T2) a six-week in-season period interspersed with 10 soccer matches. At T1 and T2, players performed the Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test level 1 (YYIR1), the repeated shuttle sprint ability test (RSSA), the countermovement jump test (CMJ), and the squat jump test (SJ). In addition, PV and hematological parameters (erythrocytes [M/mm3], hematocrit [%], hemoglobin [g/dl], mean corpuscular volume [fl], mean corpuscular hemoglobin content [pg], and mean hemoglobin concentration [%]) were assessed. Daily ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) were monitored in order to quantify the internal training load.
Results
From T1 to T2, significant performance declines were found for the YYIR1 (p<0.001, effect size [ES] = 0.5), RSSA (p<0.01, ES = 0.6) and SJ tests (p< 0.046, ES = 0.7). However, no significant changes were found for the CMJ (p = 0.86, ES = 0.1). Post-exercise, RSSA blood lactate (p<0.012, ES = 0.2) and PV (p<0.01, ES = 0.7) increased significantly from T1 to T2. A significant decrease was found from T1 to T2 for the erythrocyte value (p<0.002, ES = 0.5) and the hemoglobin concentration (p<0.018, ES = 0.8). The hematocrit percentage rate was also significantly lower (p<0.001, ES = 0.6) at T2. The mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin content and the mean hemoglobin content values were not statistically different from T1 to T2. No significant relationships were detected between training load parameters and percentage changes of hematological parameters. However, a significant relationship was observed between training load and changes in RSSA performance (r = -0.60; p<0.003).
Conclusions
An intensive period of “congested match play” over 6 weeks significantly compromised players’ physical fitness. These changes were not related to hematological parameters, even though significant alterations were detected for selected measures.
Fungi are an important component of microbial communities and are well known for their ability to decompose refractory, highly polymeric organic matter. In soils and aquatic systems, fungi play an important role in carbon processing, however, their diversity, community structure and function as well as ecological role, particularly in groundwater, are poorly studied. The aim of this study was to examine the fungal community composition, diversity and function in groundwater from 16 boreholes located in the vicinity of two lakes in NE Germany that are characterized by contrasting trophic status. The analysis of 28S rRNA gene sequences amplified from the groundwater revealed high fungal diversity arid clear differences in community structure between the aquifers. Most sequences were assigned to Ascomycota and Basidiomycota, but members of Chytridiomycota, Cryptomycota, Zygomycota, Blastocladiomycota, Glomeromycota and Neocallimastigomycota were also detected. In addition, 27 species of fungi were successfully isolated from the groundwater samples and tested for their ability to decompose complex organic polymers - the predominant carbon source in the groundwater. Most isolates showed positive activities for at least one of the tested polymer types, with three strains, belonging to the genera Gibberella, Isaria and Cadophora, able to decompose all tested substrates. Our results highlight the high diversity of fungi in groundwater, and point to their important ecological role in breaking down highly polymeric organic matter in these isolated microbial habitats. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd and British Mycological Society. All rights reserved.