bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Parenthood—Lost and Found: Exploring Parents’ Experiences of Receiving a Program in Emotion Focused Skills Training
Authors: Ansar Nadia , Hjeltnes Aslak , Stige Signe Hjelen , Binder Per-Einar , Stiegler Jan Reidar
Published: June 2021

Background

Parents play a crucial role in the development, maintenance, and deterioration of child difficulties. Emotion focused skills training (EFST) targets parents’ capacity to provide their child with emotion-oriented skills in order to promote good child mental health. Few qualitative studies have specifically investigated parents’ experiences of receiving such programs.

Objective

This study aimed to explore how parents experience working with their own and their child’s emotions undergoing a short-term program in EFST; in particular, changes in their experience of being a parent and in everyday life are reported.

Method

Semi-structured in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 14 parents who had completed a short-term EFST program (2-day group training and 6 h of supervision). Interview transcripts were analyzed using a reflexive thematic analysis approach.

Results

A total of 14 parents (40% men, four couples, Mage = 39.5, SD = 4.4) participated in the study. Our analysis resulted in the following three themes: (1) “Coming home” as a parent, with the following subthemes: (a) New ways of being with their child and (b) Parents’ painful inner world; (2) Reclaiming parenthood—applying new tools and learning in challenging situations; and (3) This is us—changing the heart of the story. The first theme was related to the descriptions of the changes that emerged in parents’ inner lives, the second revolved around the employment of their skills intuitively and creatively based on what was required by the challenging situations, and the third theme referred to new discoveries on family dynamics.

Conclusion

Parents’ experiences of having wisdom and calmness inside them (being) and doing parenting differently, as well as the changed perspectives of the family (living), resonate with the theoretical ground of emotion-focused therapy (EFT). The findings also indicate that therapists should be aware of potential parental distress when working in view of changing unpleasant emotions in such skill-based programs.
Comparative Analysis of Psychology Responding to COVID-19 Pandemic in Brics Nations
Authors: Almondes Katie Moraes de , Bizarro Lisiane , Miyazaki Maria Cristina Oliveira Santos , Soares Maria Rita Zoéga , Peuker Ana Carolina , Teodoro Maycoln , Modesto João Gabriel , Veraksa Aleksander N. , Singh Purnima , Han Buxin , Sodi Tholene
Published: June 2021

The BRICS Forum, an independent international organization encouraging commercial, political, and cultural cooperation between Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, was formed in 2011, and these countries have a significant influence on their regional affairs. These nations were hit by COVID-19 at different times, and all adopted home quarantine to reduce the spread of the virus. We present a comparative analysis of actions of psychology and potential outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic in BRICS nations regarding five aspects: psychology in health policies, social roles of psychology, socioeconomic context, actions for the general population, and health professionals during stage 1 of the pandemic, and possible actions in stage 2. Various types of actions were taken by psychologists in BRICS, with different levels of coordinated cooperation with respective governmental and non-governmental organizations, multiple and parallel efforts from different scientific societies, and professional regulatory agencies. Scientific societies have had an important role in coordinating some of these efforts, especially because they congregate the psychologists from different parts of these countries, improving communication and access to key information. The aim of these actions varies from improving situational skills and competences to increase the accessibility of psychological services and provide psychoeducation and telepsychology. We will consider the social importance of these actions within these countries as a global opportunity for psychology to stage in a complex context involving human health. The way psychology in BRICS will face this challenging situation is likely to produce important regional influence, stimulate scientific contribution, and increase the accessibility of psychology.
Exploring the Psychological Effects of COVID-19 Home Confinement in China: A Psycho-Linguistic Analysis on Weibo Data Pool
Authors: Wu Peijing , Zhao Nan , Li Sijia , Liu Zeyu , Wang Yilin , Liu Tianli , Liu Xiaoqian , Zhu Tingshao
Published: June 2021

Backgrounds

With the rapid spread of COVID-19, strict home confinement has been implemented in most parts of Chinese regions. Millions of people were not allowed to leave their homes except for special reasons. Home confinement plays an essential role in curbing pandemic and promoting preventive behaviors, but it may affect individuals’ mental health as well.

Objects

The objective of this study was to explore the psychological impacts of home confinement.

Materials and Methods

We collected more than 150,360 Weibo messages from 5,370 Chinese active users, and then extracted psycho-linguistic features from these messages. Psycho-linguistic analysis was carried out using the 2 (confinement vs. non-confinement) × 2 (before vs. after confinement) repeated measure analysis of variance (RM ANOVA).

Results

The results showed that the frequency of positive emotion words was remarkably decreased during home confinement [F(1,5368) = 7.926, p = 0.005, η2 = 0.001]. In high-endemic subgroup, home confinement also reduced the frequency of exclusion words [F(1,3445) = 4.518, p = 0.034, η2 = 0.001] and inhibition words [F(1,3445) = 10.154, p = 0.001, η2 = 0.003].

Conclusion

Home confinement caused a decline in the use of positive emotion words. This indicates that home confinement can increase the frequency of negative emotions. The changes of exclusion words and inhibition words in high-endemic areas may be related to the high epidemic threat and the urgent need for social distancing in these areas.
Having Difficulties Reading the Facial Expression of Older Individuals? Blame It on the Facial Muscles, Not the Wrinkles
Authors: Grondhuis Sabrina N. , Jimmy Angela , Teague Carolina , Brunet Nicolas M.
Published: June 2021

Previous studies have found it is more difficult identifying an emotional expression displayed by an older than a younger face. It is unknown whether this is caused by age-related changes such as wrinkles and folds interfering with perception, or by the aging of facial muscles, potentially reducing the ability of older individuals to display an interpretable expression. To discriminate between these two possibilities, participants attempted to identify facial expressions under different conditions. To control for the variables (wrinkles/folds vs facial muscles), we used Generative Adversarial Networks to make faces look older or younger. Based upon behavior data collected from 28 individuals, our model predicts that the odds of correctly identifying the expressed emotion of a face reduced 16.2% when younger faces (condition 1) are artificially aged (condition 3). Replacing the younger faces with natural old-looking faces (Condition 2), however, results in an even stronger effect (odds of correct identification decreased by 50.9%). Counterintuitively, making old faces (Condition 2) look young (Condition 4) results in the largest negative effect (odds of correct identification decreased by 74.8% compared with natural young faces). Taken together, these results suggest that both age-related decline in the facial muscles’ ability to express facial emotions and age-related physical changes in the face, explain why it is difficult to recognize facial expressions from older faces; the effect of the former, however, is much stronger than that of the latter. Facial muscle exercises, therefore, might improve the capacity to convey facial emotional expressions in the elderly.
Dealing With Negative Workplace Gossip: From the Perspective of Face
Authors: Zong Boqiang , Xu Shiyong , Zhang Lihua , Qu Jinzhao
Published: June 2021

In this study, we investigate the coping response of individuals who are being gossiped about. Drawing on face research and affective events theory, we propose that employees who are targets of negative gossip will actively respond to the gossip about them via engagement in negative gossip themselves. The findings showed that negative workplace gossip stimulated fear of losing face and led to subsequent behavioral responses, namely, engaging in negative gossip. Moreover, self-monitoring, as a moderating mechanism, mitigated the negative impacts of negative workplace gossip on the targets. We discuss theoretical implications for gossip research and note its important practical implications.
A Preliminary Exploration of Landscape Preferences Based on Naturalness and Visual Openness for College Students With Different Moods
Authors: Li Kankan , Zhai Yang , Dou Long , Liu Jianjun
Published: June 2021

The interaction between man and nature causes people to have different preferences for their surrounding environment, and pleasant landscapes can bring both physical and mental benefits to people. Previous studies have demonstrated the relationship between moods and landscape preferences, and this study sought to explore the landscape preferences of college students under different moods. A total of 1,034 students participated in the survey, recovering 1,022 valid questionnaires. The Profile of Mood States (POMS) scale was used to evaluate the mental status of each respondent. The study on landscape characteristics proceeded in two steps (comprising four gradients): landscape naturalness and landscape visual openness. The research results show that under natural landscape conditions, college students in a fatigued state have a greater preference for the second-gradient (higher naturalness) landscape environment; under the conditions of landscape visual openness, college students in an indignant state have a greater preference for the second-gradient (relatively private) landscapes. These findings have significance for exploring the rehabilitation function of landscape architecture and have a guiding role for future landscape design.
Place Attachment and Views on Tree Management
Authors: Paniotova-Maczka Daria , Matczak Piotr , Jabkowski Piotr
Published: June 2021

Few studies have investigated relational environmental views of different stakeholder groups. In this study, we investigated how residents of rural and urban municipalities view the management of trees (who should decide about trees’ removal – the landowner, or the municipality), which provides a various range of ecosystem services and the extent that place attachment as a relational variable affects these views. The analysis was based on 231 questionnaires conducted in two Polish municipalities: one rural (Nysa) and one urban (Racibórz). Data were analyzed using statistical methods including logistic regression models for analyzing factors impacting the main research question. Our investigation showed that both place attachment involving public good sentiments and the perception of ecosystem services provided by trees, that are related to private interests significantly impacted views on tree management. In rural areas the opinion, that the municipality should decide to remove trees was positively associated with a place attachment. For residents of urban areas (Racibórz), the strength of place attachment was not related to the perception of tree removal, but it was related to the perception of trees’ cultural benefits. We argue that considering psychological variables related to the tree management issues could help avoid conflicts.
A Bifactor Model of Subjective Well-Being at Personal, Community, and Country Levels: A Case With Three Latin-American Countries
Authors: Torres-Vallejos Javier , Juarros-Basterretxea Joel , Oyanedel Juan Carlos , Sato Masatoshi
Published: June 2021

Improving citizens' subjective well-being (SWB) has become an increasingly visible policy goal across industrialized countries. Although an increasing number of studies have investigated SWB at the individual level, little is known about subjective evaluation at social levels, such as the community and national levels. While the relationships between these levels have been analyzed in previous research, these assessments, which are part of the same unique construct of SWB, are under-investigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the dimensionality and reliability of a single measure of SWB, which contained individual, community, and national levels across three Latin-American countries (Argentina, Chile, and Venezuela), using a bifactor model analysis. Findings showed that the bifactor model exhibited a good fit to the data for the three countries. However, invariance testing between countries was not fully supported because of each item's specific contribution to both specific and general constructs. The analyses of each country showed that the SWB construct was in a gray area between unidimensionality and multidimensionality; some factors contributed more to the general factor and others to the specific level, depending on the country. These findings call for integrating more distant levels (community and country levels) into the understanding of SWB at the individual level, as they contribute not only to an overall construct, but they make unique contributions to SWB, which must be considered in public policy making.
Effects of a Teacher-Training Violence Prevention Program in Jamaican Preschools on Child Behavior, Academic Achievement, and School Attendance in Grade One of Primary School: Follow up of a Cluster Randomized Trial
Authors: Baker-Henningham Helen , Scott Yakeisha , Francis Taja , Walker Susan P.
Published: June 2021

Objective: We evaluated the effect of a universal, teacher-training, violence-prevention program implemented in preschool, on high-risk children's behavior, achievement, and attendance in grade one of primary school.

Methods: A cluster-randomized trial was conducted in 24 preschools in Kingston, Jamaica. Three children from each class with the highest level of teacher-reported conduct problems were recruited for evaluation of outcomes (n = 225 children). For this study, to increase power, we recruited an additional two children from each class with the next highest teacher-reported scores for conduct problems in preschool. In the final term of grade one of primary school, we assessed children's: (1) conduct problems and social skills at home and school, (2) academic achievement, language, and self-regulation skills, and (3) school attendance.

Results: 214/225 (95.1%) of the children evaluated in preschool were assessed in grade one of primary school; an additional 150 children were recruited to give 364 children (181 intervention, 183 control). Significant benefits of intervention were found for child academic achievement (Effect size (ES) = 0.23, p = 0.02), oral language (ES = 0.28, p = 0.006), self-regulation (ES = 0.25, p = 0.007), and school attendance (ES = 0.30, p = 0.003). No significant benefits were found for observed conduct problems (ES = −0.13, p = 0.16), and parent-reported conduct problems (ES = 0.10, p = 0.31) and social skills (ES = −0.07, p = 0.52). Benefits to teacher-reported conduct problems and social skills were significant at p < 0.1 (ES = −0.16, p = 0.09, and ES = 0.19, p = 0.06, respectively).

Conclusion: A scalable intervention involving training preschool teachers in classroom behavior management and how to promote child social-emotional competence led to positive outcomes in primary school across multiple child developmental domains for high-risk children.
Curvilinear Effects of Extraversion on Socialization Outcomes Among Chinese College Students
Authors: Deng Yingxin , Chen Huitian , Yao Xiang
Published: June 2021

The authors examine the too-much-of-a-good-thing effect (TMGT effect) in a model showing that extraversion has a curvilinear relationship with social acceptance and depression. A study of 371 freshmen in a Chinese university showed that extraversion had a curvilinear relationship with social acceptance, such that the relationship was significantly positive from lower to moderate levels of extraversion, but the positive relationship leveled off at higher levels of extraversion. Extraversion also had a curvilinear relationship with depression, such that the relationship was significantly negative from lower to moderate levels of extraversion, but the negative relationship leveled off at higher levels of extraversion. The study indicates that beyond a certain point, the beneficial effects of extraversion on socialization outcomes were diminished. That is, higher levels of extraversion were not associated with more positive socialization outcomes (though they were not associated with worse outcomes either) when extraversion exceeded a certain point. Implications of theory and practice, and limitations and directions for future research, are discussed.
Innovating Technology-Enhanced Interventions for Youth Suicide: Insights for Measuring Implementation Outcomes
Authors: Szlyk Hannah S. , Tan Jia , Lengnick-Hall Rebecca
Published: June 2021

Technology is one medium to increase youth engagement, especially among underserved and minority groups, in suicide preventive interventions. Technology can be used to supplement or adjunct an in-person intervention, guide an in-person intervention, or be the stand-alone (automated) component of the intervention. This range in technological use is now called the continuum of behavioral intervention technologies (BITs). Overall, suicide intervention researchers do not use this terminology to categorize how the role of technology differs across technology-enhanced youth interventions. There is growing recognition that technology-enhanced interventions will not create substantial public health impact without an understanding of the individual (youth, families, and providers), mezzo (clinics and health systems of care), and contextual factors (society, culture, community) that are associated with their implementation. Implementation science is the study of methods to promote uptake of evidence-based practices and policies into the broader health care system. In this review, we incorporate work from implementation science and BIT implementation to illustrate how the study of technology-enhanced interventions for youth suicide can be advanced by specifying the role of technology and measuring implementation outcomes.
“If It Ever Really Hurts, I Try Not to Let Them Know:” The Use of Concealment as a Coping Strategy Among Adolescents With Chronic Pain
Authors: Wakefield Emily O. , Puhl Rebecca M. , Litt Mark D. , Zempsky William T.
Published: June 2021

Objective

Despite considerable evidence of chronic pain in adolescents, and its adverse consequences for their health and well-being, less is known about pain-related stigma that these youth face, such as pain disbelief by others. Adolescents with chronic pain may conceal their symptoms as a coping strategy to avoid pain-related stigma, contributing to further social isolation and disruptions in medical treatment. In the current study, we used focus group methodology to examine adolescent motivations for using concealment and the possible benefits and harmful consequences of this form of coping.

Materials and Methods

Five focus groups of 3–5 adolescents (ages 12–17) with chronic pain conditions (N = 18) were conducted as a part of a larger study to evaluate the impact of, and reaction to, pain-related stigma. Patients were recruited from an outpatient pediatric pain management clinic. Transcripts of focus group sessions were analyzed using directed content analysis for the main study, yielding anticipatory stigma and concealment categories. These categories were then explored using inductive content analysis for the current study.

Results

Adolescents described engaging in concealment of their pain symptoms. Our analysis revealed three social motivations for concealment: (1) avoidance of judgment; (2) avoidance of being a social burden; and (3) desire to be treated normally, and two harmful consequences of concealment: (1) social isolation and (2) cognitive burden.

Conclusion

Disbelief of pain symptoms may exacerbate the social isolation and disease-related burden in this population. Clinical implications of concealing pain symptoms are discussed, and points of intervention are proposed.
Testing the Associations Between Adult Playfulness and Sensation Seeking: A SEM Analysis of Librarians and Police Officers
Authors: Brauer Kay , Scherrer Tiziana , Proyer René T.
Published: June 2021

Playfulness is an understudied personality trait in adults. We examined the relationships between facets of adult playfulness and sensation seeking (SS) in distant vocational groups, namely, librarians (N= 339) and police officers (N= 399). First, manifest and latent group comparisons (measurement invariance [MI] analysis) showed that police officers were higher in SS than librarians, while we found no group differences for playfulness. Second, structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses showed that playfulness was widely positively related to SS, and findings were replicated across groups. However, the effects were of small to moderate size, and playfulness and SS shared between 4 and 22% variance. Our findings indicate that playfulness is not redundant with SS. Our study extends the understanding of adult playfulness by clarifying its overlap and distinctiveness from SS.
Coronary Heart Disease and Depression or Anxiety: A Bibliometric Analysis
Authors: Zhou Yan , Zhu Xue-Ping , Shi Jing-Jing , Yuan Guo-Zhen , Yao Zi-Ang , Chu Yu-Guang , Shi Shuai , Jia Qiu-Lei , Chen Ting , Hu Yuan-Hui
Published: June 2021

This study aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis of published studies on the association between coronary heart disease (CHD) and depression or anxiety. The study also aimed to identify leading authors, institutions, and countries to determine research hotspots and obtain some hints from the speculated future frontiers. Publications about CHD and depression or anxiety between 2004 and 2020 were collected from the Web of Science Core Collection (WOSCC) database. Bibliographic information, such as authorship, country, citation frequency, and interactive visualization, was generated using VOSviewer1.6.16 and CiteSpace5.6.R5. In total, 8,073 articles were identified in the WOSCC database. The United States (2,953 publications), Duke University and Harvard University (214 publications), Psychosomatic Medicine (297 publications), and Denollet Johan. (99 publications) were the most productive country, institutions, journal, and author, respectively. The three hotspots of the research were “The relationship between depression and CHD,” “depression and myocardial infarction,” and “The characteristic of women suffering depression after MI.” The four future research frontiers are predicted to be “treating depression in CHD patients with multimorbidity,” “psychometric properties of instruments for assessing depression and anxiety in CHD patients,” “depression or anxiety in post-PCI patients,” and “other mental diseases in CHD patients.” Bibliometric analysis of the association between CHD and depressive disorders might identify new directions for future research.
Targeting Parenting Quality to Reduce Early Life Adversity Impacts on Lifespan Cardiometabolic Risk
Authors: Bleil Maria E. , Spieker Susan J. , Booth-LaForce Cathryn
Published: June 2021

Mounting evidence that early life adversity (ELA) exposures confer risk for cardiometabolic disease over the lifespan motivated this narrative review to examine parenting quality as a potential intervention target to reduce ELA exposures or mitigate their impact as a way of reducing or preventing cardiometabolic disease. We describe findings from the limited number of family-based intervention studies in ELA-exposed children that have tested parenting impacts on cardiometabolic health outcomes. We then describe the implications of this work and make recommendations for future research that will move this field forward.
Resilient Intersection Management With Multi-Vehicle Collision Avoidance
Authors: Worrawichaipat Phuriwat , Gerding Enrico , Kaparias Ioannis , Ramchurn Sarvapali
Published: June 2021

In this paper, we propose a novel decentralised agent-based mechanism for road intersection management for connected autonomous vehicles. In our work we focus on road obstructions causing major traffic delays. In doing so, we propose the first decentralised mechanism able to maximise the overall vehicle throughput at intersections in the presence of obstructions. The distributed algorithm transfers most of the computational cost from the intersection manager to the driving agents, thereby improving scalability. Our realistic empirical experiments using SUMO show that, when an obstacle is located at the entrance or in the middle of the intersection, existing state of the art algorithms and traffic lights show a reduced throughput of 65–90% from the optimal point without obstructions while our mechanism can maintain the throughput up to 94–99%.
Urban Infrastructure Resilience Assessment During Mega Sport Events Using a Multi-Criteria Approach
Authors: Serdar Mohammad Zaher , Koc Muammer , Al-Ghamdi Sami G.
Published: June 2021

Critical infrastructures share the same space and mutual dependencies, and consequently contribute to city's overall resilience. However, each has different assessment methods and metrics, which prevents the integration of the performance results for different infrastructures into a single holistic evaluation index that can reflect the city's overall resilience and expected performance. To address this challenge, we propose the development of a multi-criteria-based integration approach that can allow the combination of different evaluation results from different assessment methods through partial factors. The proposed equation incorporates several factors, which can be divided into four groups: (1) method-efficiency factors, (2) infrastructure importance factors, (3) infrastructures' interdependency factors, and (4) strict limits that ensure that the infrastructures are suitable for hosting mega sports events. Using this approach, we hope to open the way for future research into suitable factors and facilitate resilience-based design in sustainable development and municipal planning.
Disturbance Observer-Based Backstepping Control of Tail-Sitter UAVs
Authors: Dalwadi Nihal , Deb Dipankar , Kothari Mangal , Ozana Stepan
Published: June 2021

The application scope of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is increasing along with commensurate advancements in performance. The hybrid quadrotor vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) UAV has the benefits of both rotary-wing aircraft and fixed-wing aircraft. However, the vehicle requires a robust controller for takeoff, landing, transition, and hovering modes because the aerodynamic parameters differ in those modes. We consider a nonlinear observer-based backstepping controller in the control design and provide stability analysis for handling parameter variations and external disturbances. We carry out simulations in MATLAB Simulink which show that the nonlinear observer contributes more to robustness and overall closed-loop stability, considering external disturbances in takeoff, hovering and landing phases. The backstepping controller is capable of decent trajectory-tracking during the transition from hovering to level flight and vice versa with nominal altitude drop.
Modal Analysis and Experiment of a Lycium barbarum L. Shrub for Efficient Vibration Harvesting of Fruit
Authors: Zhao Jian , Tsuchikawa Satoru , Ma Te , Hu Guangrui , Chen Yun , Wang Zhiwei , Chen Qingyu , Gao Zening , Chen Jun
Published: June 2021

The most common harvesting method of Lycium barbarum L. (L. barbarum) is manual harvesting, resulting in low efficiency and high cost. Meanwhile, the efficiency of vibration harvesting, which is considered an efficient mechanical harvesting method, can be significantly improved if the optimized resonance frequency of the shrub can be obtained. To vibration harvest fruit efficiently, a 3D model of the shrub was established based on measurements of the shape parameters, and material mechanics models of the branches were established based on physical tests. The modal analysis of the shrub based on finite element method (FEM) simulation was performed to obtain the range of resonance frequency, and the modal experiment of the shrub using acceleration sensors and an impact hammer was conducted to obtain the accurate resonance frequency. Based on the results of the modal analysis and experiment, the optimized resonance frequency was determined to be 2 Hz. The field experiment showed that the fruit fell off when the branches were vibrated at this frequency. The results provide the design basis for the efficient vibration harvesting of L. barbarum.
Phyto-Tolerance Degradation of Hydrocarbons and Accumulation of Heavy Metals by of Cajanus cajan (Pigeon Pea) in Petroleum-Oily-Sludge-Contaminated Soil
Authors: Allamin Ibrahim Alkali , Yasid Nur Adeela , Abdullah Siti Rozaimah Sheikh , Halmi Mohd Izuan Effendi , Shukor Mohd Yunus
Published: June 2021

A pot experiment was conducted to measure the phyto-tolerance and accumulation of heavy metals in petroleum oily sludge POS by Cajanus cajan (pigeon pea) on soils treated with five different concentrations (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, and 5% w/w) of the POS. The response of the plant to oily sludge varied significantly from the untreated control and among the various treatments. The growth of C. cajan was slightly (but not significantly) influenced by the oily sludge in soil; growth of C. cajan at relatively lower concentrations of POS (1 to 3%) was greater than in the treatments with relatively higher concentrations POS (4 to 5%). A significant interaction was observed in the relative growth rates (RGRs) of C. cajan, which significantly increased in the treatments with relatively low POS (1 to 3%) and decrease significantly at higher POS concentrations. The heavy metal content of the plant roots as the POS concentrations were increase show that the concentration of all heavy metals in the roots increased accordingly. Cu showed the highest accumulation with an increase from 1.9 to 6.8 mg/kg followed by Pb, Zn, Ni, Mn, and Cr, which was the least-accumulated. Heavy metal analysis in C. cajan tissues indicated a considerable accumulation of the metals Pb, Zn, Ni, Mn, Cu, and Cr in the root and stem of the plant, with negligible metal concentrations detected in the plant leaves, suggesting a low translocation factor but indicating that C. cajan is resistant to heavy metals. As the search for more eco-friendly and sustainable remediating green plant continues, C. cajan shows great potential for reclaiming POS-contaminated soil due to the above properties including resistance to toxic heavy metals from oily sludge. These findings will provide solutions to polluted soils and their subsequent re-vegetation.
Cultivation of Cowpea Challenges in West Africa for Food Security: Analysis of Factors Driving Yield Gap in Benin
Authors: Anago Firmin N. , Agbangba Emile C. , Oussou Brice T. C. , Dagbenonbakin Gustave D. , Amadji Lucien G.
Published: June 2021

Feeding the world in 2050 requires us to find ways to boost yields of the main local crops. Among those crops, cowpea is one of the grain legumes that is playing an important role in the livelihood of millions of people in West Africa, especially in Benin. Unfortunately, cowpea on-farm yields are very low. In order to understand the main factors explaining cowpea yield gaps, we collected and analyzed detailed survey data from 298 cowpea fields in Benin during the 2017, 2018 and 2019′s rainy seasons, respectively. Composite soil samples were collected from cowpea fields and analyzed in the laboratory. Data on farm field management practices and field conditions were recorded through interviews with 606 farmers. Average cowpea grain yields were low and seldom surpassed 700 kg ha−1 on farmer’s fields. Significant differences were observed between cowpea grain yields from northern to southern Benin (p < 0.05), and the lowest yields were observed in northern Benin. These low yields are related to crop management practices, soil nutrient contents, and the interaction of both. According to the model of regression tree from northern to southern Benin, the use of mineral fertilizer, insecticide sprays to control pests, and the improvement of phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium (P, N, K) and cation sum content in the topsoil would increase cowpea grain yields. Insect pests, diseases, and soil fertility decline are the largest constraints limiting grain yield in Benin. Future research should focus on formulating site-specific fertilizer recommendations for effective cowpea cultivation in Benin, as well as the control of insect pests and diseases.
The Impact of Herbage Mass on Perennial Ryegrass Swards in Autumn on Autumn and over Winter Production and Characteristics
Authors: Looney Caitlin , Wingler Astrid , Egan Michael
Published: June 2021

Accumulating herbage mass to facilitate the extension of the grazing season in autumn is commonly practised. The objective of the current study was to investigate the effect of accumulating varying target herbage masses (THM) in autumn and imposing different defoliation dates (DD), on herbage mass, sward quality and water-soluble carbohydrates in autumn and the subsequent spring. A 4 × 3 factorial split plot design was assigned with four THM (Low ≈ 500 kg·DM·ha−1, Medium ≈ 1500 kg·DM·ha−1, High ≈ 2000 kg·DM·ha−1 and Very high ≈ 3000 kg·DM·ha−1) and three DD (DD1—15 October, DD2—7 November and DD3—21 November), across two years. Measurements were carried out at each DD and in spring. Differences in sward quality were found between each THM on different DD. Sward quality reduced from DD2 to DD3 in the high THM (−13 g·kg−1 DM CP, p < 0.001). The very high THM had the lowest sward quality from DD1 (206 g·kg−1 DM CP, p < 0.001 and 787 g·kg−1 DM DMD, p < 0.05). This study has identified the defoliation date of THM in autumn as key to improving autumn management strategies for increased utilisation and sward quality.
Use of Microbial Biostimulants to Increase the Salinity Tolerance of Vegetable Transplants
Authors: Miceli Alessandro , Moncada Alessandra , Vetrano Filippo
Published: June 2021

Vegetable plants are more sensitive to salt stress during the early growth stages; hence, the availability of poor-quality brackish water can be a big issue for the nursery vegetable industry. Microbial biostimulants promote growth and vigor and counterbalance salt stress in mature plants. This study aimed to evaluate the application of plant growth-promoting microorganisms for improving salt tolerance of lettuce and tomato seedlings irrigated with different water salinity levels (0, 25, and 50 mM NaCl) during nursery growth. Two commercial microbial biostimulants were applied to the substrate before seeding: 1.5 g L−1 of TNC BactorrS13 containing 1.3 × 108 CFU g−1 of Bacillus spp.; 0.75 g L−1 of Flortis Micorrize containing 30% of Glomus spp., 1.24 × 108 CFU g−1 of Agrobacterium radiobacter, Bacillus subtilis, Streptomyces spp. and 3 × 105 CFU g−1 of Thricoderma spp. Many morpho-physiological parameters of lettuce and tomato seedlings suffered the negative effect of salinity. The use of the microbial biostimulants modified seedling growth and its response to salt stress. They had a growth-promoting effect on the unstressed seedlings increasing fresh and dry biomass accumulation, leaf number, and leaf area and were successful in increasing salinity tolerance of seedlings especially when using Flortis Micorizze that enhanced salinity tolerance up to 50 mM NaCl. The inoculation of the substrate with microbial biostimulants could represent a sustainable way to improve lettuce and tomato transplant quality and to use brackish water in vegetable nurseries limiting its negative effect on seedling growth.
Development and Yield Traits Indicate That the Constitutive Wound Response Phenotype of Prosystemin Overexpressing Tomato Plants Entails No Fitness Penalty
Authors: Luna-Martínez Mariela , Martínez-Gallardo Norma , Casarrubias-Castillo Kena , Monti Simona M. , Coppola Mariangela , Rao Rosa , Délano-Frier John P.
Published: June 2021

Systemin is a peptide hormone that regulates the wound response in tomato plants. Consequently, the overexpression of its prosystemin (ProSys) precursor protein leads to a resource-demanding constitutive activation of tomato’s wound-response. According to the growth vs. defense resource allocation premise, ProSys overexpression should negatively affect the physiological fitness of tomato plants. The present study was performed to explore why the opposite effect was steadily observed, instead. It was based on the premise that a better understanding of this unexpected outcome could help establish improved wound and related defense responses without negatively affecting crop productivity. To this effect, an experimental strategy was deployed to measure various physiological, biochemical and molecular parameters associated with either development, productivity, defense or in combination in untransformed (WT) and ProSys overexpressing (ProSys-OE) tomato plants. Thus, the chlorophyll fluorescence data obtained from plants grown under greenhouse experiments indicated that photosynthetic performance was not affected in ProSys-OE plants which also grew 7–14% taller than WT plants. Moreover, they showed accelerated flowering and yielded fruits of increased size (7–16% taller and wider) and weight (16–58% heavier), with modified fruit quality in terms of firmness (28% higher), titratable acidity (27–32% higher) and chemical composition. These findings suggest two complementary possibilities: (i) systemin is able to modulate both the wound response and plant development through the activation of jasmonic acid biosynthesis and signaling, and (ii) ProSys, an intrinsically disordered protein, acts as a signaling hub to regulate development and defense programs. These results shed light on the understanding of this plant regulatory mechanism and further suggest that systemin/ProSys-based regulation is central to control the defense-development balance in tomato. This knowledge could eventually lead to improved and more environmentally sound agricultural production practices.
Regulating Companion Dog Welfare: A Comparative Study of Legal Frameworks in Western Countries
Authors: Andersen Søren Stig , Meyer Iben , Forkman Björn , Nielsen Søren Saxmose , Sandøe Peter
Published: June 2021

There appear to be growing concerns among experts, NGOs, and members of the public about the welfare of companion dogs. With farm and laboratory animals, legislative initiatives have long been considered valuable tools in the management of welfare whereas the use of legislation to protect companion animal welfare has received less attention. We aim to rectify this by comparing legislation with an impact on the welfare of companion dogs in eleven Western jurisdictions. The comparison also provides a basis for further consideration of regulatory initiatives. We identify the rules applying in the jurisdictions and classify them in accordance with the following categories: breeding of dogs with risks to the health of the offspring, reproductive limitations, sales, surgical interventions, day-to-day handling, and killing. We demonstrate that, overall, there is significant variation across the jurisdictions. However, the degree of variation depends on the specific category. Whereas most countries, with the USA being a notable exception, regulate sales of dogs and ban surgical interventions, there is considerable variation in the regulation of day-to-day handling and the killing of dogs. Furthermore, different jurisdictions employ different regulatory tools to ensure the desired level of welfare for companion dogs. Overall, there appears to be real potential for dialogue and mutual inspiration.
Hunt Trials as a Measure to Assess Level of Training in Boarhounds
Authors: Bednarek Elżbieta , Sławinska Anna
Published: June 2021

Boarhounds are hunting dogs bred for hunting wild boar, including terriers, dachshunds, and hounds. Hunt trials evaluate the individual hunting potential and trainability of the boarhounds in ten different competitions. The aim of this study was to determine the factors influencing the hunt trials for boarhounds in a large cohort of hunting dogs. The analysis was conducted based on the results of hunt trials for boarhounds conducted in 2005–2015. The database contained 1867 individuals belonging to 39 breeds. Effects of sex, age, breed group, and breed were estimated by non-parametric analysis of variance. Sex influenced (p < 0.01) the total score, and in almost all competitions dogs performed better than bitches. Age affected (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05) all competitions, indicating that the dogs perform better with age. The results analyzed by the breed group showed that the dachshunds performed better in courage (p < 0.01) and searching (p < 0.05). Breed influenced (p < 0.01) almost all scores except obedience and tracking on the lead. The best performing breed was Alpine Dachsbracke. In conclusion, all analyzed factors influenced the results of the hunt trials. The factors with the largest impact were breed and age, which reflect both the hunting potential and the level of training of the boarhounds.
SARS-CoV-2, a Threat to Marine Mammals? A Study from Italian Seawaters
Authors: Audino Tania , Grattarola Carla , Centelleghe Cinzia , Peletto Simone , Giorda Federica , Florio Caterina , Caramelli Maria , Bozzetta Elena , Mazzariol Sandro , Di Guardo Giovanni , Lauriano Giancarlo , Casalone Cristina
Published: June 2021

Zoonotically transmitted coronaviruses were responsible for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), causing the dramatic Coronavirus Disease-2019 (CoViD-19) pandemic, which affected public health, the economy, and society on a global scale. The impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic permeated into our environment and wildlife as well; in particular, concern has been raised about the viral occurrence and persistence in aquatic and marine ecosystems. The discharge of untreated wastewaters carrying infectious SARS-CoV-2 into natural water systems that are home to sea mammals may have dramatic consequences on vulnerable species. The efficient transmission of coronaviruses raises questions regarding the contributions of virus-receptor interactions. The main receptor of SARS-CoV-2 is Angiotensin Converting Enzyme-2 (ACE-2), serving as a functional receptor for the viral spike (S) protein. This study aimed, through the comparative analysis of the ACE-2 receptor with the human one, at assessing susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 for different species of marine mammals living in Italian waters. We also determined, by means of immunohistochemistry, ACE-2 receptor localization in the lung tissue from different cetacean species, in order to provide a preliminary characterization of ACE-2 expression in the marine mammal respiratory tracts. Furthermore, to evaluate if and how Italian wastewater management and coastal exposition to extreme weather events may led to susceptible marine mammal populations being exposed to SARS-CoV-2, geomapping data were carried out and overlapped. The results showed the potential SARS-CoV-2 exposure for marine mammals inhabiting Italian coastal waters, putting them at risk when swimming and feeding in specific risk areas. Thus, we highlighted the potential hazard of the reverse zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection, along with its impact on marine mammals regularly inhabiting the Mediterranean Sea, while also stressing the need for appropriate action in order to prevent further damage to specific vulnerable populations.
The European Union Is Still Unable to Find Nemo and Dory-Time for a Reliable Traceability System for the Marine Aquarium Trade
Authors: Biondo Monica V. , Calado Ricardo
Published: June 2021

The EU is one of the main importers of marine ornamental species sourced from tropical coral reefs around the world. While the entrance of live organisms into the EU, along with their intra-EU circulation, is framed within stringent control mechanisms, to date, no reliable figures exist concerning which marine ornamental species are imported, in what numbers, and where they are sourced from. This lack of reliable data in the EU on the trade of marine ornamental species is puzzling if one considers that all these imported specimens must be controlled at customs offices located in international airports. Such data deficiency favors the prevalence of blurry supply chains and a “business as usual” mindset that hampers any serious effort to promote sustainability in the marine aquarium industry. To safeguard the collection of findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable (FAIR) data, we suggest that the EU platform Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES) refines its surveillance on the trade of marine ornamental species. The detailed survey of marine ornamental fishes alone can be used as a proof of concept to validate the use of TRACES for this purpose and, if successful, it can later be expanded to all other taxonomic groups of marine ornamental species.
Personalized Piperacillin Dosing for the Critically Ill: A Retrospective Analysis of Clinical Experience with Dosing Software and Therapeutic Drug Monitoring to Optimize Antimicrobial Dosing
Authors: Chiriac Ute , Richter Daniel C. , Frey Otto R. , Röhr Anka C. , Helbig Sophia , Preisenberger Judit , Hagel Stefan , Roberts Jason A. , Weigand Markus A. , Brinkmann Alexander
Published: June 2021

Optimization of antibiotic dosing is a treatment intervention that is likely to improve outcomes in severe infections. The aim of this retrospective study was to describe the therapeutic exposure of steady state piperacillin concentrations (cPIP) and clinical outcome in critically ill patients with sepsis or septic shock who received continuous infusion of piperacillin with dosing personalized through software-guided empiric dosing and therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM). Therapeutic drug exposure was defined as cPIP of 32–64 mg/L (2–4× the ‘MIC breakpoint’ of Pseudomonas aeruginosa). Of the 1544 patients screened, we included 179 patients (335 serum concentrations), of whom 89% achieved the minimum therapeutic exposure of >32 mg/L and 12% achieved potentially harmful cPIP > 96 mg/L within the first 48 h. Therapeutic exposure was achieved in 40% of the patients. Subsequent TDM-guided dose adjustments significantly enhanced therapeutic exposure to 65%, and significantly reduced cPIP > 96 mg/L to 5%. Mortality in patients with cPIP > 96 mg/L (13/21; 62%) (OR 5.257, 95% CI 1.867–14.802, p = 0.001) or 64–96 mg/L (30/76; 45%) (OR 2.696, 95% CI 1.301–5.586, p = 0.007) was significantly higher compared to patients with therapeutic exposure (17/72; 24%). Given the observed variability in critically ill patients, combining the application of dosing software and consecutive TDM increases therapeutic drug exposure of piperacillin in patients with sepsis and septic shock.