Temperament in bullheads: do laboratory and field explorative behaviour variables correlate?

The relevance of temperament traits for life history strategy or productivity is increasingly acknowledged. Temperament traits are often either observed in captivity or in the wild, but studies combining both observations are very rare. We examine whether exploratory behaviour in the bullhead (Cottus perifretum), assayed under laboratory conditions, predicts this behaviour under field conditions. Forty-three PIT-tagged individuals were first assayed for exploration of a novel environment in the aquarium and then released into an unfamiliar stream stretch, where they were later relocated using a mobile antenna. Explorative behaviour assayed in the laboratory was significantly positively related to the exploration in the field, thus predicting distance moved in the field release. Both in the laboratory and in the field, explorative behaviour was not related to individual body length. When bullheads that did not leave the refuge in the aquarium (laboratory assay) and, therefore, did not explore the new environment were excluded from the analysis, the correlation between laboratory and field explorative behaviour variables became weaker. However, overall, our results illustrate that exploration rate of bullheads in isolated single-individual experiments can be used to predict this behaviour in the natural ecosystem.     

Fetal magnetocardiography using optically pumped magnetometers: a more adaptable and less expensive alternative?

Fetal magnetocardiography provides the requisite precision for diagnostic measurement of electrophysiological events in the fetal heart. Despite its significant benefits, this technique with current cryogenic based sensors has been limited to few centers, due to high cost of maintenance. In this study, we show that a less expensive non-cryogenic alternative, optically pumped magnetometers, can provide similar electrophysiological and quantitative characteristics when subjected to direct comparison with the current technology. Further research can potentially increase its clinical use for fetal magnetocardiography. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Set-aside management: How do succession, sowing patterns and landscape context affect biodiversity?

European Union (EU) member states set aside between 5 and 15% of arable land during the last two decades, but abolition of the set-aside scheme in 2008 caused a sudden loss in habitat availability and biodiversity in agricultural landscapes. Management of set-aside has many facets and in this perspective paper we focus on the biodiversity effects of successional age, sowing strategies and landscape context. Young, 1-2-year-old set-asides have been initially considered to be too ephemeral to have any conservation value. However, when a rich seed and bud bank is available, a species-rich natural (secondary) succession can be observed. Arable (annual) weed communities in the first two years of succession can even include endangered plant species with associated rare insect consumers. Furthermore, many bird species benefit from early-successional habitats, whereas small mammal communities are richer in older habitats. If the local plant species pool is poor, sowings of diverse mixtures from regional seed collections can be recommended. Set-aside managers using species-rich sowings often experience that dominant weeds suppress the less competitive annual species. This trend to species-poor communities can be avoided by intraspecific aggregation of competitively weak species. Broadening the spatial scale from the plot to the landscape, efficiency of set-aside is highest in simple landscapes, where set-aside exhibits greatest effect in enhancement of biodiversity and associated services such as pollination and biological control. In complex landscapes, however, additional set-aside does not add much to the high level of biodiversity and ecological processes already present. Twenty percent of semi-natural, non-crop habitat appears to be a rough threshold for enhancing biodiversity and sustaining services such as pollination and biological control, but improved set-aside management should have the potential to reduce the percentage of semi-natural non-crop habitat needed. EU policy should tailor set-aside schemes for the maintenance of biodiversity and also consider that management efficiency is higher in simple than complex landscapes.     

Prenatal diagnosis of cleft lip and/or palate: What do we tell prospective parents?

Cleft lip and/or palate (CL/CP) is the most common congenital craniofacial anomaly and parents often ask, “how did this happen?” Patients and families may benefit from access to a multidisciplinary team (MDT) from prenatal diagnosis into early adulthood. Multiple factors can contribute to the development of a cleft. We discuss the epidemiology and risk factors that increase the likelihood of having a newborn with a cleft. The purpose of this article is to review the prenatal investigations involved in the diagnosis and workup of these patients in addition to postpartum treatment, prognostic factors, and counseling families regarding future recurrence risk.     

How do scientific assessments learn?: Part 1. Conceptual framework and case study of the IPCC

Scientific assessments play a crucial role in advising and shaping political decisions particularly in the environmental domain. Therefore, this and the accompanying paper (Part 2) present two case studies of international environmental assessments with a perspective on internal learning processes. When carried out over a longer period of time, scientific assessments provide an opportunity for learning from past experience and from other assessment experiences which gives them the opportunity to become more powerful institutions in the process of solving environmental problems and in advising political decision-making. The paper will investigate how the assessments at hand organised their learning processes and which factors might have been influential in these processes. To answer these questions, a conceptual framework will be developed drawing particularly on literature on organisational learning. This concept will be applied to two case studies on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and (Part 2) on the scientific assessments under the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP). Both cases are iterative processes with significant changes of the assessment institutions over time, but they differ in their basic structures and in their effectiveness with regard to political outcomes which allows for their comparison in order to draw general conclusions.     

How do scientific assessments learn?: Part 2. Case study of the LRTAP assessments and comparative conclusions

Building on the introduction of the conceptual framework and the case study of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in Part 1, this paper presents a case study of the scientific assessments within the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air-Pollution (LRTAP). This case study will be analysed under the umbrella of same conceptual framework as the previous case study in order to allow for comparative conclusions. In a comparative view, significant differences in structures, public attention, and the structure of the problems under consideration could account for differences in the learning performance in the two cases. The paper finally provides some suggestions for the design of assessments as endeavours of collective learning.     

Seed drops and caches by the harvester ant Messor barbarus: do they contribute to seed dispersal in Mediterranean grasslands?

 To determine whether the harvester ant Messor barbarus acts as a seed disperser in Mediterranean grasslands, the accuracy level of seed processing was assessed in the field by quantifying seed drops by loaded foragers. In the vicinity of exploited seed patches 3 times as many diaspores were found as in controls due to seed losses by foragers. Over trails, up to 30% of harvested seeds were dropped, singly, by workers but all were recovered by nestmates within 24 h. Seeds were also dropped within temporary caches with very few viable diaspores being left per cache when ants no longer used the trail. Globally, ant-dispersed diaspores accounted for only 0.1% of seeds harvested by M. barbarus. We discuss the possible significance for grassland vegetation of harvester-ant-mediated seed dispersal. Received: 26 January 2000 / Accepted in revised form: 20 June 2000     

An overview of reproductive carrier screening panels for autosomal recessive and/or X-linked conditions: How much do we know?

Background & Aim

Reproductive carrier screening seeks to identify couples at a high risk of having offspring affected by autosomal recessive and X-linked (XL) conditions. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive overview of existing carrier screening panels by examining their gene content and characteristics, identifying the most common genes/conditions included in these panels, and analyzing their listed prices.

Methods

A comprehensive evaluation of existing carrier screening panels was conducted by searching for web-based content, reviewing information brochures, and establishing direct contact with the providers via email or phone.

Results

Twenty-two panels and their providers were identified with a cumulative total of 2205 unique genes. The number of genes included in these panels varied from 44 to 2054. Only 15 genes (0.7%) were included in all the panels. The carrier frequency of these 15 common genes and their associated conditions varied greatly, but the conditions associated with the genes are “severe”. The price of these 22 panels ranged from $349 to $4320 per couple (USD in 2023). The correlation between the listed price and the number of selected genes among these panels was small and not statistically significant (r = 0.1023, p = 0.6959).

Conclusion

Considerable discrepancies exist among carrier screening panels. Ongoing research and monitoring are necessary to capture the dynamic nature of the carrier screening landscape, providing up-to-date information for clinical practice and informed decision-making.     

Integrated CO2 capture and reduction catalysis:Role of γ-Al2O3 support,unique state of potassium and synergy with copper

Carbon dioxide capture and reduction (CCR) process emerges as an efficient catalytic strategy for CO₂ capture and conversion to valuable chemicals.K-promoted Cu/Al₂O₃ catalysts exhibited promising CO₂ capture efficiency and highly selective conversion to syngas(CO+H₂).The dynamic nature of the Cu-K system at reaction conditions complicates the identification of the catalytically active phase and surface sites.The present work aims at more pr...     

Astaxanthin and papilioerythrinone in the skin of birds: a chromatic convergence of two metabolic routes with different precursors?

Carotenoids are organic pigments involved in several important physiological functions and may serve as indicators of individual quality in animals. These pigments are only obtained by animals from the diet, but they can be later transformed into other carotenoids by specific enzymatic reactions. The diet of farm-reared and probably wild red-legged partridges (Alectoris rufa) is mainly based on cereals that contain high levels of lutein and zeaxanthin. These two carotenoids are also predominant in internal tissues and blood of red-legged partridges. However, in their integuments, astaxanthin and papilioerythrinone (the last one identified in this work) are mainly present in their free form and esterified with fatty acids. According to available literature about carotenoid metabolism in animals, we propose that astaxanthin (λ _max?=?478 nm) and papilioerythrinone (λ _max?=?452–478 nm) are the result of a chromatic convergence of the transformation of dietary zeaxanthin and lutein, respectively. Moreover, the results obtained in this work provide the first identification by liquid chromatography coupled to accurate mass quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer system of papilioerythrinone (m/z 581.3989 [M?+?H]⁺) in the skin (i.e., not feathers) of a vertebrate. Astaxanthin and papilioerythrinone are very close in terms of chemical structure and coloration, and the combination of these two keto-carotenoids is responsible for the red color of the ornaments in red-legged partridges.     

Twin-twin transfusion syndrome recipient with arterial calcification and heterozygous variant in ABCC6: Evidence of a gene-environment interaction?

We report a case of a twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) recipient who, after successful fetoscopic surgery, developed a large pericardial effusion and calcifications of the aorta and main pulmonary artery. The donor fetus never had cardiac strain and never developed cardiac calcifications. A heterozygous likely pathogenic variant in ABCC6 (c.2018T > C, p.Leu673Pro) was identified in the recipient twin. While TTTS recipient twins are at risk of arterial calcifications and right heart failure secondary to the disease, calcifications of the great vessels are also observed in generalized arterial calcification of infancy, a Mendelian genetic disorder with associated biallelic pathogenic variations in ABCC6 or ENPP1, which can result in significant pediatric morbidity or mortality. The recipient twin in this case had some degree of cardiac strain prior to TTTS surgery; however, the progressive calcification of the aorta and pulmonary trunk occurred weeks after TTTS resolution. This case raises the possibility of a gene-environment interaction and emphasizes the need for genetic evaluation in the setting of TTTS and calcifications.     

Impacts of climatic change on water and natural hazards in the Alps: Can current water governance cope with future challenges? Examples from the European “ACQWA” project

This paper reviews the possible future situation of the Rhone River in the Swiss part of its catchment. Physical processes in the Alps govern the behaviour of the Rhone from its source (Rhone Glacier) to the Lake of Geneva, and substantial changes are expected to occur in the amount and seasonality of precipitation, and in the response of snow and glaciers to a warming climate. As a result, discharge in the alpine part of the Rhone River is likely to undergo an increase in winter and early spring, but strongly decreases from late spring to late autumn. These changes in water regimes will certainly be accompanied by more frequent geomorphic hazards, related to increases in heavy precipitation events and the melting of permanently frozen grounds. The direct and indirect impacts of a warming climate will affect key economic sectors such as tourism, hydropower, and agriculture, while shifts in extreme events will have an impact on the vulnerability of infrastructure and a range of economic sectors and services. Projections of the future course of events can help in advance planning and decision making in order to alleviate some of the more negative consequences of climate and hydrological impacts on key economic sectors in the region. This paper will thus discuss issues related to current and future water governance in the region, whether water-related policies are sufficiently robust today to cope with what may be rapid changes in water availability and water use in coming decades, and to resolve possible rivalries between economic sectors that may be increasingly confronted with problems of water availability at critical times of the year.