Intensified inter-annual precipitation fluctuation has profoundly altered the structure and functioning of grassland ecosystems. However, it remains elusive how fertilisation and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi affect plant communities under a variable precipitation regime. We tested the interactive effects of inter-annual precipitation fluctuation, nutrient addition (nitrogen, N and phosphorus, P) and suppression of AM fungi on aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and the species composition of plant community of a desert steppe for two consecutive years (2019 and 2020). Our study demonstrated that inter-annual precipitation fluctuation had a greater impact on ANPP and the species composition of plant community than N and P addition and AM fungi, suggesting that the impacts of fertilisation and AM fungi varied by year and may be difficult to predict over time. In a normal year (2019), N and P inputs altered the ANPP and the species composition of plant community via enhancing the biomass and dominance of annual species but had few impacts on the same parameters in a dry year (2020). AM fungi had only a minimal effect on plant communities across the two years. P input alone slightly enhanced plant species richness and diversity. Our results indicate that plant community responses to nutrient enrichment and AM fungi could be changed by inter-annual precipitation fluctuation and that precipitation is a key factor affecting plant communities in desert steppe.

Dispersive movements are often thought to be multiclausal and driven by individual body size, sex, conspecific density, environmental variation and/or other factors. Yet such factors rarely account for most of the variation present among dispersive movements in nature, leaving open the possibility that dispersion might be indeterministic and vary in response to environmental stochasticity. We assessed the amount of variation in movement distances that could be accounted for by potential predictors of dispersal with a large empirical dataset of movement distances performed by Fowler’s Toads (Anaxyrus fowleri) on the northern shore of Lake Erie at Long Point, Ontario (2002 – 2021, incl.). These toads are easy to sample repeatedly, can be identified individually and undertake dispersive movements parallel to the shoreline on a daily basis as they forage at night. Using a linear mixed-effect model that incorporated random effect terms to account for sampling variance and inter-year environmental variation, we found that all potential predictors of dispersive movements of these animals were, at best, weak predictors that accounted for virtually none of the variation observed among movement distances. We also used linear regression models to test for the impact of environmental stochasticity on dispersive movements and identified a strong positive correlation between the distribution of toad movement distances and variability in lake water level. We conclude that deterministic proximal factors, whether intrinsic or extrinsic, neither can be shown nor are necessary to drive dispersive movements in this population. Variation in dispersive movements can be ascribed, instead, to environmental unpredictability, consistent with nomadism.

Background: With the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, influenza surveillance systems in Spain were transformed into a new syndromic sentinel surveillance system. The Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance System (SiVIRA in Spanish) is based on a sentinel network for Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) surveillance in Primary care, and a network of sentinel hospitals for Severe ARI (SARI) surveillance in hospitals. Methods: Using a test-negative design and data from SARI admissions notified to SiVIRA between January 1 and October 3, 2021, we estimated COVID-19 VE against hospitalization, by age group, vaccine type, time since vaccination and SARS-CoV-2 variant. Results: VE was 89% (95% CI: 83-93) against COVID-19 hospitalization overall in persons aged 20 years and older. VE was higher for mRNA vaccines, and lower for those aged 80 years and older, with a decrease in protection beyond 3 months of completing vaccination, and a further decrease after 5 months. We found no differences between periods with circulation of Alpha or Delta SARS-CoV-2 variants, although variant-specific VE was slightly higher against Alpha. Conclusions: The SiVIRA surveillance system, with a network of sentinel hospitals in Spain was able to describe clinical and epidemiological characteristics of SARI hospitalizations, monitor the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses, and provide data to measure the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination in the population under surveillance. Our results add to evidence of high VE of mRNA vaccines against severe COVID-19 and waning protection with time since vaccination.

Parasite induced changes in host behavior is considered adaptive if it provides a reproductive advantage to the parasite. The entomopathogenic fungi are a fascinating group of arthropod parasites that exhibit enormous diversity in terms of both host choice and reproductive strategy, some of which actively manipulate the behavior of their host as a means to increase reproductive success. Here we focus on anamorphs of the genus Torrubiella, namely Gibellula spp., which are all obligate pathogens of spiders that kill their hosts in locations suspiciously ideal for fungal reproduction and propagation. In a final, eerily purposeful act, hosts reliably spin a thin stratum of web on the under-surface of a leaf to which they secure themselves immediately before death. We provide both theoretical and empirical lines of evidence that this phenomenon represents an extended phenotype of parasite genes analogous to those observed in other taxonomically related parasite-host systems. We argue that observations of spiders killed by Gibellula sp. both in the field (in situ) and the laboratory (in vitro), as well as this species’ close phylogenetic relation to other fungal lineages believed or suspected to influence host behavior, are strong evidence for the presence of adaptive manipulation.

In this paper, we stabilize the coupled Euler–Bernoulli (E–B) plate equations with variable coefficients and time-varying delays by defining a suitable energy function based on Riemannian geometry.

We measured the content of nitrogen and phosphorus, as well as nitrogen stable isotopes in plant biomass and marmot faeces in a distance gradient up to 20 meters from marmot burrows in an extremely arid glacier valley in Eastern Pamir, Tajikistan. The goal of this study was to test well-known mechanisms of ecosystem engineering by burrowing animals in previously unstudied conditions. We captured aerial images of the area inhabited by marmots to study the spatial distribution of vegetation. There was no relationship between the presence of burrows and vegetation cover. Burrow mounds were not colonised by plants, as opposed to other ecosystems, where mounds are often microhabitats that enhance plant diversity. A significant increase in N and P in aboveground green plant biomass in the proximity of burrows was found in one out of six studied species. Stable N isotopes did not give further insight into N routing, contrary to our expectations. We assume that plant growth is strongly limited by water availability, which prevents them from utilizing the local increase in nutrients, certainly provided by marmot activity. The results are contrary to numerous studies which showed that the role of burrowing animals as ecosystem engineers increases with increasing abiotic stress, including aridity. This shows a lack of this type of study in the end of the gradient of abiotic factors.

The flow regime is regarded as the key driver of the structure and function of riverine ecosystems. To reveal the changes in the ecohydrological pattern of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River after the impoundment of the Three Gorges Reservoir. Hydrological data from Yichang, Hankou, and Datong stations from 1960 to 2020 were selected to detect the annual mean flow changes trend by three techniques. The degree of hydrological alteration was also evaluated using the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA)/Range of Variability Approach (RVA). The results show that: (1) The average annual flow of the Yangtze River from 1960 to 2020 shows a decreasing trend. (2) The abrupt change of annual average flow occurred in the year 2003, which reflects the significant effect of the Three Gorges reservoir on the flow regime. The alteration degrees of the Yichang, Hankou, and Datong gauge stations are 65%, 58%, and 46%, respectively. (3) The Three Gorges Reservoir caused changes in the flow pattern of the Yangtze River and had a particular impact on the fish population structure. The study provides a scientific reference for the ecological protection of water resources in the middle and lower reaches.

Species of Elaeocarpaceae vary, but complete chloroplast genome data and systematic comparisons across the family are rarely reported. To understand the variation in chloroplast sequence size and structure in Elaeocarpaceae, the chloroplast genomes of 9 species were sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform and further assembled and annotated with Elaeocarpus japonicus and Sloanea sinensis (family Elaeocarpaceae) as references. A phylogenomic tree was constructed based on the complete chloroplast genomes of the 11 species representing 5 genera of Elaeocarpaceae. Chloroplast genome characteristics were examined by using Circoletto and IRscope software. The results revealed the following: (a) The 11 sequenced chloroplast genomes ranged in size from 157,546 bp to 159,400 bp. (b) The chloroplast genomes of Elaeocarpus, Sloanea, Crinodendron and Vallea lacked the rpl32 gene in the small single-copy (SSC) region. The large single-copy (LSC) region of the chloroplast genomes lacked the ndhK gene in Elaeocarpus, Vallea stipularis, and Aristotelia fruticosa. The LSC region of the chloroplast genomes lacked the infA gene in Elaeocarpus and Crinodendron patagua. (c) Through inverted repeat (IR) expansion and contraction analysis, a significant difference was found between the LSC/IRB and IRA/LSC boundaries among these species. Rps3 was detected in the neighboring regions of the LSC and IRb regions in Elaeocarpus. (d) Phylogenomic analysis revealed that the genus Elaeocarpus is closely related to Crinodendron patagua on an independent branch and Aristotelia fruticosa is closely related to Vallea stipularis, forming a clade with the genus Sloanea. Structural comparisons showed that Elaeocarpaceae diverged at 60 Mya, the genus Elaeocarpus diverged 53 Mya and that the genus Sloanea diverged 0.44 Mya. These results provide new insight into the evolution of the Elaeocarpaceae.

Polymerized human hemoglobin (PolyhHb) is being studied as a possible red blood cell (RBC) substitute for use in scenarios where blood is not available. While the O 2 carrying capacity of PolyhHb makes it appealing as an O 2 therapeutic, the commercial PolyhHb PolyHeme® (Northfield Laboratories Inc., Evanston, IL) was never approved for clinical use due to the presence of large quantities of low molecular weight polymeric (LMW) Hb species (<500 kDa), which have been shown to elicit vasoconstriction, systemic hypertension, and oxidative tissue injury in vivo. Previous bench-top scale studies in our lab demonstrated the ability to synthesize and purify PolyhHb using a two-stage tangential flow filtration (TFF) purification process to remove almost all undesirable Hb species (>0.2 µm and <500 kDa) in the material to create a product that should be safer for transfusion. Therefore, in order to enable future large animal studies and eventual human clinical trials, PolyhHb synthesis and purification processes need to be scaled up to the pilot scale. Hence in this study, we describe pilot scale synthesis and purification of PolyhHb. Characterization of pilot scale PolyhHb showed that PolyhHb could be successfully produced to yield biophysical properties conducive for its use as an RBC substitute.

Modern biotechnological laboratories are equipped with advanced parallel mini-bioreactor facilities that can perform sophisticated cultivation strategies (e.g. fed-batch or continuous) and generate significant amounts of measurement data. These systems require not only optimal experimental designs that find the best conditions in very large design spaces, but also algorithms that manage to operate a large number of different cultivations in parallel within a well-defined and tightly constrained operating regime. Existing advanced process control algorithms have to be tailored to tackle the specific issues of such facilities such as: a very complex biological system, constant changes in the metabolic activity and phenotypes, shifts of pH and/or temperature, and metabolic switches, e.g. by product induction, to name a few. In this work we implement a model-predictive control (MPC) approach based framework to demonstrate: 1) the challenges in terms of mathematical model structure, state and parameter estimation, and optimization under highly nonlinear and stiff constraints in biological systems, 2) the adaptations required to enable its application in High Throughput Bioprocess Development (HTBD), and 3) the added value of MPC implementations when operating parallel mini-bioreactors aiming to maximize the biomass concentration while coping with hard constrains on the Dissolved Oxygen Tension profile.Modern biotechnological laboratories are equipped with advanced parallel mini-bioreactor facilities that can perform sophisticated cultivation strategies (e.g. fed-batch or continuous) and generate significant amounts of measurement data. These systems require not only optimal experimental designs that find the best conditions in very large design spaces, but also algorithms that manage to operate a large number of different cultivations in parallel within a well-defined and tightly constrained operating regime. Existing advanced process control algorithms have to be tailored to tackle the specific issues of such facilities such as: a very complex biological system, constant changes in the metabolic activity and phenotypes, shifts of pH and/or temperature, and metabolic switches, e.g., by induction of product formation, to name a few.In this work we implement a model predictive control (MPC) framework to demonstrate: 1) the challenges in terms of mathematical model structure, state and parameter estimation, and optimization under highly nonlinear and stiff dynamics in biological systems, 2) the adaptations required to enable the application of MPC in High Throughput Bioprocess Development (HTBD), and 3) the added value of MPC implementations when operating parallel mini-bioreactors aiming to maximize the biomass concentration while coping with hard constrains on the Dissolved Oxygen Tension profile.

Esomeprazole is a proton pump inhibitor being investigated for treatment of preeclampsia. Esomeprazole pharmacokinetics during pregnancy is unknown. We used data from 10 pregnant patients with preterm preeclampsia, and 49 non-pregnant individuals to develop a population pharmacokinetic model of esomeprazole. A two-compartment model described the data well. In pregnant patients after single dose, clearance was 42.2% (14.9%– 61.6%) lower compared to non-pregnant, most likely due to downregulation of CYP2C19. In non-pregnant after repeated dosing, clearance was 54.9% (48.2% – 63.5%) lower in extensive metabolizers and bioavailability was 33% (10.0% – 52.0%) higher compared to single dosing, which could be due to autoinhibition of CYP2C19. Esomeprazole pharmacokinetics during pregnancy appears to be more dependent on CYP3A4.

We evaluated uptake and factors associated with COVID-19 vaccination among health workers (HWs) in Azerbaijan. Among 1,575 HWs, 73% had received at least one dose and 67% received two doses; all received CoronaVac. Factors associated with vaccination uptake included no previous COVID-19 infection, older age, belief in the vaccine’s safety, previous vaccination for influenza, having patient-facing roles, and good or excellent health by self-assessment. These findings could inform strategies to increase vaccination uptake as the campaign continues.

This project deals with the sizing of unit operations in process engineering. Process engineering is the understanding and application of the fundamental principles and laws of nature that allow us to transform raw material and energy into products that are useful to society, at an industrial level. By taking advantage of the driving forces of nature such as pressure, temperature and concentration gradients, as well as the law of conservation of mass, process engineers can develop methods to synthesize and purify large quantities of desired chemical products. In this project we will focus in the design, operation, control, optimization and intensification of chemical processes by designing pipelines in each case study. For Numerical Resolution, will use the chemical process simulator Aspen HYSYS, used to mathematically model chemical processes. We have a multitude of problems to deal with during this project. 1. Study of an incompressible fluid flow in a pipeline 2. Technology of Heat Exchangers 3. Refrigeration cycle

Background: Accessory mitral valve tissue (AMVT) is an extremely rare causes left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) obstruction and is usually incidentally detected in childhood. It is often associated with other cardiac and vascular congenital malformations. Case Presentation: In this case, we present a 15-year-old girl was diagnosed with AMVT by transesophageal echocardiography, resulting in LVOT obstruction during systole. Interestingly enough, the patient’s accessory mitral valve remained undetected for years until he became symptomatic for wide ASD. Successful closure of the ASD with resection of the AMVT was performed with a transaortic approach. The patient was hemodynamically stable postoperatively. There were no abnormalities in the mitral valves and LVOT. Conclusion: It was also unusual to see AMVT with ASD instead of other frequently associated other congenital anomalies. Accessory mitral valve should be considered a rare but important cause of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction in childhood.

Tricuspid annuloplasty for moderate to severe TR (Class I, IIb) is the current standard of practice to restore the normal tricuspid annular dimension and function (1,2). The current controversy in atrioventricular surgery concerns the indication for concomitant TA in patients with moderate TR and significant annular dilatation of at least > 40 mm or at least 21 mm/m2 indexed for body surface area (Class IIb) during mitral valve surgery proposed by the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology and European Society of Cardiology (1,2,3)

AIMS This study analysed the clinical features of children with intracranial germ cell tumours (IC-GCTs) treated at two European centres. We retrospectively reviewed timelag between symptoms onset, clinic-radiological findings, diagnosis and outcomes. METHODS Symptoms at diagnosis were divided into four groups: 1)raised intracranial pressure (RICP); 2)visual impairment; 3)endocrinopathy; 4)other. Total diagnostic interval (TDI), defined as the interval between symptom onset (including retrospective recall of symptoms) and definitive diagnosis of IC-GCT, was calculated and compared to survival rates. RESULTS Our cohort included 55 children with a median follow-up of 78.9 months (0.5-249.9). The majority (63.6%) had germinomas and 10.9% were metastatic at diagnosis. IC-GCTs were suprasellar (41.8%), pineal (36.4%), bifocal (12.7%) or in atypical sites (9.1%). The most common presenting symptoms were related to RICP (43.6%); however, by the time of tumour diagnosis, 50.9% of the patients had developed endocrine dysfunctions. All pineal GCTs manifested with RICP or visual impairment. All suprasellar GCTs presented with endocrinopathies. TDI ranged between 0.25-58.5 months (median 4 months). Pineal GCTs had the shortest TDI (median TDI 1 month versus 24 months in suprasellar GCTs, p<0.001). TDI >6 months was observed in 47.3% of patients and was significantly associated with endocrine presenting symptoms. No statistically significant difference was found in progression-free survival and overall survival between patients with TDI >6 months and with TDI 6 months. CONCLUSION Approximately half of our patients had TDI >6 months, mostly with endocrine deficiencies as presenting symptoms. TDI >6 months was not associated with increased relapse rate or mortality.

Background Adolescent and young adult (AYA) women with sickle cell disease (SCD) have increased pregnancy-related health risks and are prescribed potentially teratogenic medications, yet little is known about pediatric SCD provider contraceptive practices. We aimed to assess pediatric hematology providers’ beliefs, practices, motivators, and barriers for providing contraceptive care to female AYA with SCD. Methods Guided by the Health Belief Model (HBM), we developed a 25-question, web-based survey to assess providers’ practices. Survey links were distributed nation-wide to pediatric SCD and/or general hematology providers through their publicly available emails and by request to directors of U.S. accredited Pediatric Hematology-Oncology fellowship programs for distribution to their SCD providers. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, chi-square analysis, logistic regression. Results Of 177 respondents, 160 surveys meeting inclusion criteria were analyzed. Most providers reported counseling (77.5%) and referring female AYA patients for contraception (90.8%), but fewer reported prescribing contraception (41.8%). Counseling practices significantly differed in trainees versus established providers (54% vs. 85%, p<0.001) with a similar trend for prescribing (p=0.05). Prescription practices did not differ significantly by provider beliefs regarding potential teratogenicity of hydroxyurea. Key motivators included patient request and disclosure of sexual activity. Key barriers included inadequate provider training, limited visit time, and perceived patient/parent interest. Conclusion Provider contraceptive practices for female AYA with SCD varied, especially by provider status. Health beliefs regarding teratogenic potential of hydroxyurea did not correlate with contraceptive practices. Clinical guidelines, provider training, and patient/parent decision-making tools may be tested to assess whether provider contraceptive practices could be improved.

A document by Andrey Smorgon. Click on the document to view its contents.

48-year-old female presented with dyspnea and fatigue in June 2020. CT imaging found pulmonary embolus and a heparin drip was initiated. She later developed chest pain which led to an echocardiogram. This imaging noted biatrial thrombus extending through mitral and tricuspid valve, as well as through a patent foramen ovale (PFO) (Fig. 1, 2). She underwent emergent sternotomy, left and right atrial embolectomy, left and right pulmonary embolectomy, and atrial septal defect closure (Fig. 3). She progressed well post op and was discharged on postoperative day 7 on therapeutic anticoagulation. Remains in good condition on follow up on long term follow up.

Background : Primary pericardial malignant mesothelioma is a highly malignant and rare tumor. We present a case of primary pericardial malignant mesothelioma in an adult male patient and review the relevant literature to extend the understanding of the disease. Methods: The patient underwent pericardial decortication through the cardiopulmonary bypass, which effectively relieved the clinical symptoms caused by the tumor blockage. Results:Postoperative pathological diagnosis and immunohistochemistry resulted in primary pericardial malignant mesothelioma. The patient recovered after surgery and was followed up regularly after discharge. Conclusions: Primary pericardial malignant mesothelioma lacks characteristic clinical and imaging manifestations, invariably resulting in misdiagnosis. Pathological results combined with immunohistochemistry are the gold standard for diagnosis. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment, but the prognosis is extremely poor.

The plant-sourced polyketide triacetic acid lactone (TAL) has been recognized as a promising platform chemical for the biorefinery industry. However, its practical application was rather limited due to low natural abundance and inefficient cell factories for biosynthesis. Here we report the metabolic engineering of oleaginous yeast Rhodotorula toruloides for TAL overproduction. We first introduced a 2-pyrone synthase gene from Gerbera hybrida ( GhPS) into R. toruloides and investigated the effects of different carbon sources on TAL production. We then systematically employed a variety of metabolic engineering strategies to increase the flux of acetyl-CoA by enhancing its biosynthetic pathways and disrupting its competing pathways. We found that overexpression of citrate lyase (ACL1) improved TAL production by 45% compared to the GhPS overexpressing strain, and additional overexpression of acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC1) further increased TAL production by 29%. Finally, we characterized the resulting strain I12- ACL1-ACC1 using fed-batch bioreactor fermentation in glucose or oilcane juice medium with acetate supplementation and achieved a titer of 28 g/L or 23 g/L TAL, respectively. This study demonstrates that R. toruloides is a promising host for production of TAL and other acetyl-CoA-derived polyketides from low-cost carbon sources.

Persistent soil seed banks are characteristic of Arctostaphylos (Ericaceae) species in the Mediterranean-climate California Floristic Province. While most species are obligate seeders, regeneration of stands of all Arctostaphylos species ultimately depends on post-fire seedling recruitment. Arctostaphylos seed banks are created, in large part, by scatter-hoarding rodents. Variation in fruit morphology, therefore, is expected to impact the Arctostaphylos-rodent interaction. Seeds produce sufficient rewards (nutritious mature embryo) to entice rodents to disperse and ultimately bury seeds in the soil. Hard seed coats increase the time required to extract the embryo, encouraging rodents to choose storage over immediate predation, and endocarps are frequently empty. We assessed the variation of fruit endocarp fusion and seed viability among species of Arctostaphylos. Factors such as latitude, elevation, life history, ploidy, and phylogenetic position were also analyzed. Generalized mixed effects models were used to determine the factors contributing to variation in fruit endocarp fusion and viability. Our results indicate that fruit volume and shape are the most important variables affecting endocarp fusion and seed viability. Additionally, other potential influences only show a weak correlation and are not predicted to significantly impact fruit endocarp fusion or viability. These findings provide insight into evolved strategies used by plants to increase reproductive success via scatter-hoarding rodents. Our study benefits the conservation and restoration of Arctostaphylos stands by emphasizing the importance of animal-mediated dispersal and providing estimates of seed viability for different species. With the anticipated effects of climate change, such as departures from historic fire regimes, the preservation of the relationship between plants and animal foragers is crucial for the continued survival of Arctostaphylos and California’s evergreen chaparral.

The motion of plane curves specified by hyperbolic inverse mean curvature with a constant force term is considered. We proved that this flow remains the convexity for any forced term. Furthermore, we give an example to understand how the constant forced term $c$ affects this hyperbolic inverse mean flow. Particularly, the asymptotic behavior of the flow under different initial conditions is discussed.

As a result of recommendations from some influencers on vitamin D as a helpful supplement against Covid-19, the number of people taking vitamin D as a regular dietary supplement has increased, as has the amount of the dose taken individually. As a globally active health network, the Lazar Medical Consortium Group (LCG) has access to privacy-protected patient data in more than 25 countries. We searched the records of 14.742 patients worldwide for vitamin D intake on record, onset as well as duration of intake, and symptoms coded according to ICD-10 that were consistent with vitamin D-related hypervitaminosis. The evaluation revealed evidence of a worldwide overuse of vitamin D so massive that medical providers working with the Lazar Medical Consortium Group have all received a Red Label Notice to educate patients at every patient contact against the danger of taking too much vitamin D (>1000. I.U. per day).