Lianas are a distinctive component of tropical forests and their increase in abundance may have profound ramifications for forest composition and ecosystem functioning. However, so far, the current view considers lianas as a single, functional plant type and, therefore, ignores the life history differences among species resulting from their climbing mechanisms. Here, we integrate data from the main functional traits used to characterize plant form and function with global abundance data to reveal that lianas consistently have differences associated with their main climbing mechanisms. Overall, lianas with active climbing were characterized by an acquisitive strategy, showing higher specific leaf area, foliar nitrogen and slightly higher (marginally significant) maximum photosynthetic rates compared to lianas with passive climbing. Using structural equation modeling, we show that across the tropics the abundance of lianas with active climbing is mainly determined by forest structure (stem size distribution). Our study shows that active and passive climbing lianas clearly diverge in their functional traits and factors affecting their distribution. We conclude that a shift in the current view, where lianas are considered a single, functional plant type, is urgently needed to increase our predictability of their effects on tropical forests in the future.

The mechanisms by which woody plants recover xylem hydraulic capacity after drought stress are not well understood, particularly with regard to the role of embolism refilling. We evaluated the recovery of xylem hydraulic capacity in young Eucalyptus saligna plants exposed to cycles of drought stress and rewatering. Plants were exposed to moderate and severe drought stress treatments, with recovery monitored at time intervals from 24 hrs to 6 months after rewatering. The percentage loss of xylem vessels due to embolism (PLV) was quantified at each time point using micro-computed tomography with stem water potential (Ψx) and whole plant transpiration (Eplant) measured prior to scans. Plants exposed to severe drought stress suffered high levels of embolism (47.38 ± 10.97 % PLV) and almost complete canopy loss. No evidence of embolism refilling was observed at 24 hrs, one week, or three weeks after rewatering despite rapid recovery in Ψx. Recovery of hydraulic capacity was achieved over a 6-month period by growth of new xylem tissue, with canopy leaf area and Eplant recovering over the same period. These findings indicate that E. saligna recovers slowly from severe drought stress, with potential for embolism to persist in the xylem for many months after rainfall.

Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) is a non-receptor kinase best known for its role in B lymphocyte development that is critical for proliferation, and survival of leukaemia cells in B cell malignancies. However, BTK is expressed in myeloid cells, particularly monocytes and macrophages where its inhibition has been reported to exhibit anti-inflammatory properties. Therefore, we explored the role of BTK on the migration of myeloid cells in vitro and in vivo. Using the zymosan induced peritonitis model of sterile inflammation we demonstrated that acute (1 h prior to zymosan) inhibition of BTK using a wide range of FDA (Ibrutinib and Acalabrutinib) and non-FDA approved inhibitors (ONO-4059, CNX-774, Olumatinib and LFM-A13) reduced neutrophil and monocyte recruitment. XID mice, which have a point mutation in the Btk gene had reduced neutrophil and monocyte recruitment to the peritoneum following zymosan challenge. To better understand the role of BTK in myeloid cell recruitment we investigated both chemotaxis and chemokine production in monocytes and macrophages. Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of BTK signalling substantially reduced human monocyte and murine macrophage chemotaxis to a range of chemoattractants (complement C5a and CCL2). We also demonstrated that inhibition of BTK in tissue resident macrophages significantly decreases chemokine secretion by reducing NF-kB activity and Akt signalling. Our work has identified a new role of BTK in regulating myeloid cell recruitment via two mechanisms, 1) reducing monocyte/macrophages’ ability to undergo chemotaxis, and 2) reducing chemokine secretion, via reduced NF-kB activity in tissue resident macrophages.

Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate the management and outcomes of the patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in a secondary hospital. Methods: A total of 699 hospitalized patients who had positive rRT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 and/or typical findings of COVID-19 at chest computed tomography (CT) were enrolled in this study. Demographics, comorbities, initial laboratory tests on admission, treatment modalities, complications and outcomes were evaluated retrospectively. Results: The mean age was 57.0±15.6 (range:16-94 years), and male:female ratio was 1.24. 58.7% of the patients had at least one underlying comorbidity, the most common was hypertension. 72.8% of the patients had positive RT-PCR. 18.1% of the patients had lymphopenia, 35.7% hyperferritinemia, 58.3% increased lactate dehydrogenase, and 58.5% increased D-dimer. Chest CT revealed moderate and severe stage in 57.9% of the patients, and bilateral lung involvement in 78.7%. Hydroxychloroquine was given to 37.2% and favipiravir 67.1% of the patients. No significant difference was observed between treatment groups in terms of mortality (P=0.487). 5.8% of the patients were transferred to the ICU, of whom 75.6% were needed non-invasive and 36.5% invasive mechanical ventilation. The overall case fatality rate was 0.9. Conclusions: Older age, male sex, low lymphocyte count, CT findings including bilateral involvement and severe stage were significantly associated with poor prognosis and mortality.

Litter decomposition, a key component of the global carbon cycle, is greatly affected by climate. Unfortunately, our current understanding of climate-change effects on decomposition stems mainly from space-for-time studies along climate gradients, where biotic and climatic effects on litter decomposition are confounded. Experimental studies separating indirect from direct climate effects are needed that test the validity of the space-for-time approach. Here, we combined large- and small scale reciprocal litter translocations, in situ precipitation manipulation, and a prominent climate gradient for studying drought effects on litter decomposition. Interestingly, all experiments indicated clear positive effects of precipitation on decomposition, but the space-for-time approach indicated the opposite, due to indirect climate effects on litter quality. This indicates that space cannot substitute for time and highlights the need for experimental evidence in litter decomposition studies. Such evidence would improve predictions of models of the global carbon cycle that include interactions between climate and vegetation.

Abstract Background: There has been no trial evaluating the psychopathology in breastfeeding mothers of infants with food allergy (FA). Objective: To investigate the effect of dietary elimination on maternal psychopathology, specifically stress/anxiety and mother-to-infant bonding and explore the importance of sociodemographic features on these variables. Methods: Breastfeeding mothers following an elimination diet due to FA in their children aged 1-to-12 months were compared with the healthy controls. Physician-diagnosed FA group were divided into IgE-, non-IgE-mediated and infants with some minor symptoms which were not enough to make the diagnosis of FA were classified as Indecisive symptoms for FA group. Mothers completed standardized questionnaires including Symptom Checklist 90R, Beck Depression/Anxiety Inventories (BDI/BAI), Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire (Bonding). Results: Of 179 mother-infants, 64 were healthy, 89 were FA, 16 were indecisive symptoms for FA. The mean age of the mothers and infants were 31.1±4.7 years and 6.3±3.6 months. The physician diagnosed FA groups had higher scores for anxiety (p=0.008), anger (p=0.042), depression (p<0.001), obsession (p=0.002), phobia (p=0.008), somatization (p=0.002) and general symptom index (GSI) (p=0.001), BDI (p<0.001), BAI (p=0.008) and Bonding [attachment (p=0.001), anger (p=0.019) and total (p=0.036)] than the healthy. The indecisive symptoms for FA group had a similar score pattern to physician-diagnosed FA except interpersonal sensitivity, BDI and attachment. Conclusion: Breastfeeding mothers of infants with FA were anxious, depressive and had many psychopathologies which affected bonding. Interventions targeting negativity in caregivers’ social relationships are urgently needed.

A series of pyrazine-interior-embodied MOF-74 composites (py-MOF-74) were successfully synthesized by a post vapor modification method, concomitant with the loading ratio of pyrazine easily controlled in this process. Here, pyrazine molecules perform as a cavity-occupant to block the wide pores of MOF-74, which accentuates the adsorption discrepancy of a pair of gases on MOFs and consequently reinforces the adsorption selectivity (typically for CO2/N2, CO2/CH4). Different from the “physical confinement” of occupants, pyrazine molecule with dual “para-nitrogen” atoms donates one N atom to bond with the open metal ion of MOF-74 for stability, and remains the other N atom available for potential CO2 trapping site. Pyrazine-interior-embodied MOF-74 composites manifest significantly improved CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4 adsorption selectivity. Typically, py-MOF-74c with ultimate pyrazine insertion displays selectivity greatly superior to MOF-74 in the equimolar CO2/CH4 (598 vs. 35) and the simulated CO2/N2 flue gas (471 vs. 49) at 100 kPa and 298 K.

Calcium channel blocker overdose is encountered in human and veterinary medicine. At toxic levels these medications alter glucose metabolism, vascular tone, and cardiac function. Hyperinsulinemia/euglycemia therapy is a cardioprotective treatment used in human medicine, but rarely documented in veterinary medicine. This is the first report of HIET in a cat.

Tracheobronchial injuries following blunt trauma have a low incidence due to the high mortality rate before reaching hospitals. This case report advocates for conservative management in a hemodynamic patient with a large longitudinal tracheal laceration with no signs of acute complication.

Knowledge of plant hydraulic strategies (isohydric vs anisohydric) is crucial to predict the response of plants to changing environmental conditions, such as climate-change induced extreme drought. Several abiotic factors, such as evaporative demand, have been shown to seasonally modify the isohydricity of plants, however, the impact of biotic factors, such as plant-plant interactions on hydraulic strategies has seldom been explored. Here, we investigated adaptations in hydraulic strategies for two woody species in response to seasonal abiotic conditions, experimental drought and plant invasion in a Mediterranean cork oak (Quercus suber) ecosystem with a combined shrub invasion (Cistus ladanifer) and rain exclusion experiment. From summer to winter, the degree of isohydricity shifted from partial isohydric to anisohydric in Q. suber and inversely from strict anisohydric to partial isohydric for C. ladanifer. During drought, plant invasion significantly modified the hydraulic strategy of invaded Q. suber to a higher degree of anisohydricity with severe negative consequences for tree functioning, implying progressive leaf and xylem damage. The rain exclusion alone led to a non-significant increase in anisohydricity for both species. We demonstrate that the degree of isohydricity of plants is dynamically determined by the interplay of species-specific hydraulic traits and their abiotic and biotic environment.

N-acetylglutamate synthase deficiency (NAGSD, MIM #237310) is an autosomal recessive urea cycle disorder caused either by decreased expression of the NAGS gene or defective NAGS enzyme resulting in decreased production of N-acetylglutamate (NAG), an allosteric activator of carbamylphosphate synthetase 1 (CPS1). NAGSD is the only urea cycle disorder that can be effectively treated with a single drug, N-carbamylglutamate (NCG), a stable NAG analog, which activates CPS1 to restore ureagenesis. We describe three patients with NAGSD due to four novel sequence variants in the NAGS regulatory regions. All three patients had hyperammonemia that resolved upon treatment with NCG. Sequence variants NM_153006.2:c.-3065A>C and NM_153006.2:c-3098C>T reside in the NAGS enhancer, within known HNF1 and predicted glucocorticoid receptor binding sites, respectively. Sequence variants NM_153006.2:c.426+326G>A and NM_153006.2:c.427-218A>C reside in the first intron of NAGS and define a novel NAGS regulatory element that binds retinoic X receptor α. Reporter gene assays in HepG2 and HuH-7 cells demonstrated that all four substitutions could result in reduced expression of NAGS. These findings show that analyzing non-coding regions of NAGS and other urea cycle genes can reveal molecular causes of disease and identify novel regulators of ureagenesis.

Objectives Investigation of whether the duration of fasting preoperatively has an impact on pain and return to normal function after tonsillectomy To investigate the impact of the duration of preoperative fasting on pain and return to normal function after tonsillectomy. Design Retrospective study with surgeon blinded to the participants undergoing tonsillectomy with or without adenoidectomy Setting University teaching hospital, Sydney, Australia Participants A total of 174 children (n=174) ages 4-12 years old between February 2017 to April 2020 were enrolled. The children were randomised to receive instructions either from the staff at the hospital (n=90) or by the anaesthetist (n=84) in terms of exact pre-operative fasting. Main Outcome measures Fasting times, clear liquid caloric intake 2 hours prior to surgery and Parents Postoperative Pain Measures (PPPM) were documented and analysed. Secondary measures of analgesia usage, number of postoperative nausea or vomiting events were also analysed. Results Observed difference were noted between the instructed fasting period and the actual fasting period. Significant difference in PPPM scores was noted between the Hospital group and the juice group (p<0.001). No significant difference was noted at first to 3rd day (p=0.11) or by the 8th to 10th postoperative day (p=0.93). There was no difference in oxycodone usage between the two groups (p=0.52), or in postoperative nausea and vomiting (p=0.43) Conclusions Significantly lower PPPM scores were noted on day of surgery in the group that had fasting minimised. The effects appeared to trend in a positive manner but larger number of cases need to be performed for results to be of greater significance. Further research is required into the impact of caloric nutrition to enhance recovery after tonsillectomy.

Cerebrovascular Accidents represent a dangerous complication of cyanotic children with tetralogy of fallot with incidence of 8.6%.Tetralogy of Fallot has been associated with raised haematocrit with low arterial Saturation. Here we describe an 18 months old female child of Tetralogy of Fallot with Cyanotic spells acute onset right sided hemiplegia with Right Atrial thrombus who underwent emergency surgery with intraoperative predicament.

Reintubation in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) increases morbidity, mortality, and the overall cost of care. Post-extubation airway obstruction (PEAO) is a potentially predictable cause of extubation failure and may be prevented by the use of corticosteroids. Defining which patients are most at risk for the development of POAE as well as the optimal dose and timing of corticosteroids for prevention is critical. We review the current literature regarding the use of corticosteroids surrounding extubation in the PICU and discuss the implications that a clear algorithm for identification and treatment of these patients would have in the care of critically ill children.

African swine fever (ASF) is one of the most important viral diseases of domestic pigs and wild boar. Apart from endemic cycles in Africa, ASF is now continuously spreading in Europe and Asia. As ASF leads to severe but unspecific clinical signs and high lethality, early pathogen detection is of utmost importance. Recently, “point-of-care” (POC) tests have been intensively discussed for the use in remote areas but also in the context of on-farm epidemiological investigations and wild boar carcass screening. Along these lines, the INGEZIM ASFV CROM Ag lateral flow assay (Eurofins Technologies Ingenasa) promises virus antigen detection under field conditions within minutes. In the present study, we evaluated the performance of the assay with selected high-quality reference blood samples, and also with real field samples from wild boar carcasses in different stages of decay from the ongoing ASF outbreak in Germany. While we observed a sensitivity of roughly 77% in freeze-thawed matrices of close to ideal quality, our approach to simulate field conditions in direct carcass testing without any modification resulted in a drastically reduced sensitivity of only 12.5%. Freeze thawing increased the sensitivity to roughly 44% which mirrored the overall sensitivity of 49% in the total data set of carcass samples. A diagnostic specificity of 100% was observed. However, most of the German ASF cases in wild boar would have been missed using the lateral flow assay (LFA) alone. Therefore, the antigen-specific LFA should not be regarded as a substitute for any OIE listed diagnostic method and has very limited use for carcass testing at the point of care. For optimized LFA antigen tests, the sensitivity with field samples must be significantly increased. An improved sensitivity is seen with freeze-thawed samples, which may indicate problems in the accessibility of ASFV antigen.

Full spark frames have been widely applied in sparse signal processing, signal reconstruction with erasures and phase retrieval. Since testing whether a given frame is full spark is hard for NP under randomized polynomial-time reductions, hence the deterministic full spark (DFS) frames are particularly significant. However, the degree of freedom of choices of DFS frames is not enough in practical applications because the DFS frames are well known as Vandermonde frames and harmonic frames. In this paper, we focus on the deterministic constructions of full spark frames. We present a new and effective method to construct DFS frames by using Cauchy matrices. We also construct the DFS frames by using Cauchy-Vandermonde matrices. Finally, we show that full spark tight frames can be constructed from generalized Cauchy matrices.

The evaluation of sustainable land management practices is imperative under particular soil type, climate, and cropping sequence following area-specific best management practices. The alternative land-use system (ALUS-natural forest, pasture, cashew, areca nut, coconut) on hills and agricultural land-use system (AGLUS-rice-rice, rice-pulse) in the coastal plains of west coast India was evaluated in this study. The present study assessed the impact of sustainable land-use management practices on different fractions of SOC and soil quality under ALUS and AGLUS. The total SOC stocks under different land-use systems varied from 14.4 Mg ha−1 in rice–rice rotations to 133.7 Mg ha−1 in cashew and more than 75% of total SOC stock were found as a passive carbon pool. The higher lability index, available nutrients, and biochemical properties were found in ALUS. This variation in the levels of SOC and soil quality was due to land use and management practices. The results indicated land use with areca nut (0.8) on the hills and rice–pulses (0.25) rotations on the coast had maintained soil quality of high order. On upscaling the different land-use systems by growing cashew, areca nut, coconut, pasture, and rice-pulses rotations, SOC stocks of Goa can increase from 6.33 Tg at present to 32 Tg. We recommend promoting sustainable agriculture with ALUS on the hills and with AGLUS on the coastal plains of Goa for enhancing SOC sequestration and improving soil quality.

Land-use practice shift in the wetland riparian zone can influence groundwater table (GWT) fluctuations and salts dynamics, potentially leading to soil salinization. The risk of soil salinization linked with high water tables could better manage using high growing capacity and deep-rooted phreatophytic vegetation via ‘biodrainage’ approach. We evaluated the impacts of short rotation willow (SRW) plantation on soil and groundwater salinity linked to shallow GWT fluctuations and compared with adjacent annual crop (AC) and pasture (PA) in a field experiment. Groundwater salinity (ECgw) along with depth to GWT and soil salinity (ECsoil at 0-60 cm depth) were measured along transects within each land-use practice in two prairie pothole region (PPR) wetland sites (A and B). The variations in ECgw were significant (p < 0.05) across land-uses; however, inconsistent between sites. The positive correlation with ECgw, ECsoil, and total dissolved salts (TDS) indicated higher salinity and salt accumulation with increased depth to GWT in both sites. The ECsoil varied significantly (p < 0.05) among land-use practices; however, no consistent land-use patterns were observed between sites. Throughout the experimentation, site B consistently exhibited higher ECsoil (two-fold) than site A. Decreasing inclinations were observed in ECsoil with increasing SRW biomass at both depths (i.e., 0-30 and 30-60 cm) and vice versa. This study refines our knowledge of SRW linked potential hydrological alteration and its implication on salinity, which provides critical context for degraded marginal riparian wetland soil management in the PPR.

Due to the similarity of most edible cricket species, identifying them in the field or from breeding facilities is more complex than spotting generic specimens. However, it can be done using neural network model to identify and classify cricket species. Since machine learning algorithms are difficult to understand and much more difficult to execute. We seek to solve these laborious processes in this paper by using the most recent machine learning application and their applicability for assisting biodiversity of three cricket species. A graphical user interface bases machine learning application (Lobe) usability for classifying edible insects and their sexes is proposed in this Abstract.

Introduction: Echocardiography has been an integral part of neonatal care since the 1990s and application of this technology is increasing ever since. It is already known that differences in weight, age and race significantly affect the normal heart dimensions. Therefore, establishing the normative values for cardiac dimensions among Indian healthy newborn infants is of paramount importance. In this study we report the normal reference values of echocardiographic chamber dimensions of newborn infants from eastern India. Methods: 100 healthy newborn infants were included in this cross-sectional, observational, single hospital-based pilot study. A single experienced cardiologist performed the trans-thoracic echocardiographic studies on the subjects in supine position in their respective bassinets. No sedation was used. The parameters were distributed according to body weight and in percentiles. Results: Subjects were categorized according to their body weight into three groups: 2-2.4 kg, 2.5-2.9 kg and 3-3.5 kg. Each group comprises of 7, 50 and 43 newborns respectively. Left ventricular end-diastolic dimension and left ventricular end-systolic dimension showed incremental trends across body weight. Conclusion: This study shows the difference of cardiac dimensions in Indian newborn infants from western data. This is the first study presenting the normative reference ranges and percentiles of echocardiographic parameters in Indian newborn infants which needs confirmation with larger multicenter studies.

Our case was a middle-aged woman with advanced cervical cancer that underwent pelvic exenteration (PE) and then pelvic reconstruction (PR) with omental flap and bakri balloon placement.

Since 2014, an Asian lineage of Zika virus has caused outbreaks, and it has been associated with neurological disorders in adults and congenital defects in newborns. The resulting threat of the Zika virus to human health has prompted the development of new vaccines, which have yet to be approved for human use. Vaccines based on the attenuated or chemically inactivated virus will require large-scale production of the intact virus to meet potential global demands. Intact viruses are produced by infecting cultures of susceptible cells, a dynamic process that spans from hours to days and has yet to be optimized. Here, we infected Vero cells adhesively cultured in well-plates with two Zika virus strains: a recently isolated strain from the Asian lineage, and a cell-culture-adapted strain from the African lineage. At different time points post-infection, virus particles in the supernatant were quantified; further, microscopy images were used to quantify cell density and the proportion of cells expressing viral protein. These measurements were performed across multiple replicate samples of one-step infections every four hours over 60 hours and for multi-step infections every four to 24 hours over 144 hours, generating a rich dataset. For each set of data, mathematical models were developed to estimate parameters associated with cell infection and virus production. The African-lineage strain was found to produce a 14-fold higher yield than the Asian-lineage strain in one-step growth and a 7-fold higher titer in multi-step growth, suggesting a benefit of cell-culture adaptation for developing a vaccine strain. We found that image-based measurements were critical for discriminating among different models, and different parameters for the two strains could account for the experimentally observed differences. An exponential-distributed delay model performed best in accounting for multi-step infection of the Asian strain, and it highlighted the significant sensitivity of virus titer to the rate of viral degradation, with implications for optimization of vaccine production. More broadly, this work highlights how image-based measurements can contribute to discrimination of virus-culture models for the optimal production of inactivated and attenuated whole-virus vaccines.

This paper presents the roles the interpretations of religion (or texts) and understanding of religion play in the sustainability of peace among the Yorùbá people of southwest Nigeria. The Yorùbá’s way of interacting and practising religion has remained moderately amiable over the last two centuries when compared with other communities in Nigeria. With attention on Yorùbá Christians and Muslims, this author examines some specific religious concepts and values that have been useful in guiding the two religions to retain their peace or return to dialogue table to refrain from violence and keep the peace. The paper argues that the interpretations of some religious terms and values among the Yorùbá enhance their pursuance of peace.Please note: The bulk of this article is taken from chapter 8 of the author's doctoral dissertation with a few amendments to suit this journal.

Objectives: Discharging a child home on long term ventilation (LTV) via tracheostomy is complex and involves multiple healthcare providers across healthcare sectors. To date, patient and family feedback of a newly developed LTV discharge pathway has been anecdotal. Our objective was to explore the perceptions of family caregivers (FCs) that have completed the LTV pathway to home with respect to their: (1) experience with transitions across the pathway (2) perceptions of competency attainment and, (3) viewed opportunities for improvement. Methods: We conducted 11 semi structured interviews with FCs. Interviews focused on FCs experience with the training process, perception of competency from a knowledge and skill perspective and opportunities for improvement. Interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, coded and analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis approach. Results: Eight mothers and 3 fathers of 10 children participated. Six primary themes were identified: 1) making an informed decision, 2) transitioning to rehabilitation, 3) building capacity for self-care, 4) coordinating case management, 5) readying for discharge home and, 6) experiencing home care. Conclusion: Overall, FCs felt that the preparation and transition support obtained through the application of a standardized LTV discharge pathway allowed successful attainment of new knowledge and skills necessary to care for their child with LTV at home.