bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Mule deer–cattle interactions in managed coniferous forests during seasonal grazing periods in southern British Columbia, Canada
Authors: Lindgren Pontus M. F. , Sullivan Thomas P.
Published: April 2015

Context In young forests of the Pacific North-west of North America, the potential impacts of domestic grazing by cattle (Bos taurus) on forest ecosystems and native ungulates such as mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are poorly understood. It is not clear how cattle and deer may interact in young forests used for summer range by both ungulates, and winter range used by deer, where pre-commercial thinning (PCT) and fertilisation enhance both timber and forage. Aims To test the following two hypotheses: (H1) that PCT and repeated fertilisation of young lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia) stands would increase relative habitat use by cattle; and (H2) that increased use of forested range by cattle would result in decreased use by mule deer. Methods Replicate study areas were located near Summerland, Kelowna, and Williams Lake in south-central British Columbia, Canada. Each study area had the following nine treatments: four pairs of stands thinned to densities of ~250 (very low), ~500 (low), ~1000 (medium), and ~2000 (high) stems ha–1 with one stand of each pair fertilised five times at 2-year intervals. Relative habitat use was measured by counting cowpies for cattle in summer and pellet groups for deer in summer and winter periods 1998–2003. Key results Relative habitat use by cattle was significantly enhanced by fertiliser treatments and heavy thinning, supporting H1. Relative habitat use by deer during summer periods was not affected by stand density, but was significantly higher in fertilised than unfertilised stands, with no difference in winter months, thereby not supporting H2. Conclusions Summer habitat use by mule deer appeared to be a function of forage opportunities and no significant correlations in relative habitat use between cattle and mule deer during the summer were detected. Negative correlations were better explained by the need for tree cover by deer during severe winter conditions than a negative response to cattle grazing. Implications Domestic grazing by cattle may be compatible with native ungulates such as mule deer, at least in those forest sites that are managed intensively for timber production. Fertilisation may result in sufficient forage production in the understorey vegetation of these forest ecosystems, to compensate for cattle grazing that reduces the live forage biomass.
Remote sensing can locate and assess the changing abundance of hollow-bearing trees for wildlife in Australian native forests
Authors: Owers Christopher J. , Kavanagh Rodney P. , Bruce Eleanor
Published: April 2015

Context Hollow-bearing trees are an important breeding and shelter resource for wildlife in Australian native forests and hollow availability can influence species abundance and diversity in forest ecosystems. A persistent problem for forest managers is the ability to locate and survey hollow-bearing trees with a high level of accuracy at low cost over large areas of forest. Aims The aim of this study was to determine whether remote-sensing techniques could identify key variables useful in classifying the likelihood of a tree to contain hollows suitable for wildlife. Methods The data were high-resolution, multispectral aerial imagery and light detection and ranging (Lidar). A ground-based survey of 194 trees, 96 Eucalyptus crebra and 98 E. chloroclada and E. blakelyi, were used to train and validate tree-senescence classification models. Key results We found that trees in the youngest stage of tree senescence, which had a very low probability of hollow occurrence, could be distinguished using multispectral aerial imagery from trees in the later stages of tree senescence, which had a high probability of hollow occurrence. Independently, the canopy-height model used to estimate crown foliage density demonstrated the potential of Lidar-derived structural parameters as predictors of senescence and the hollow-bearing status of individual trees. Conclusions This study demonstrated a ‘proof of concept’ that remotely sensed tree parameters are suitable predictor variables for the hollow-bearing status of an individual tree. Implications Distinguishing early stage senescence trees from later-stage senescence trees using remote sensing offers potential as an efficient, repeatable and cost-effective way to map the distribution and abundance of hollow-bearing trees across the landscape. Further development is required to automate this process across the landscape, particularly the delineation of tree crowns. Further improvements may be obtained using a combination of these remote-sensing techniques. This information has important applications in commercial forest inventory and in biodiversity monitoring programs.
The effect of research activities and winter precipitation on voiding behaviour of Agassiz’s desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii)
Authors: Agha Mickey , Murphy Mason O. , Lovich Jeffrey E. , Ennen Joshua R. , Oldham Christian R. , Meyer Kathie , Bjurlin Curtis , Austin Meaghan , Madrak Sheila , Loughran Caleb , Tennant Laura , Price Steven J.
Published: April 2015

Context
There is little information available on how research activities might cause stress responses in wildlife, especially responses of threatened species such as the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii).

Aims
The present study aims to detect behavioural effects of researcher handling and winter precipitation on a natural population of desert tortoises in the desert of Southwestern United States, over the period 1997 to 2014, through extensive assessments of capture events during multiple research studies, and capture–mark–recapture survivorship analysis.

Methods
Juvenile and adult desert tortoises were repeatedly handled with consistent methodology across 18 years during 10 study seasons. Using a generalised linear mixed-effects model, we assessed the effects of both research manipulation and abiotic conditions on probability of voiding. Additionally, we used a Cormack–Jolly–Seber model to assess the effects of winter precipitation and voiding on long-term apparent survivorship.

Key results
Of 1008 total capture events, voiding was recorded on 83 (8.2%) occasions in 42 different individuals. Our top models indicated that increases in handling time led to significantly higher probabilities of voiding for juveniles, females and males. Similarly, increases in precipitation resulted in significantly higher probabilities of voiding for juveniles and females, but not for males. Tortoise capture frequency was negatively correlated with voiding occurrence. Cormack–Jolly–Seber models demonstrated a weak effect of winter precipitation on survivorship, but a negligible effect for both voiding behaviour and sex.

Conclusions
Handling-induced voiding by desert tortoises may occur during common research activities and years of above average winter precipitation. Increased likelihood of voiding in individuals with relatively low numbers of recaptures suggested that tortoises may have perceived researchers initially as predators, and therefore voided as a defensive strategy. Voiding does not appear to impact long-term survivorship in desert tortoises at this site.

Implications
This study has demonstrated that common handling practices on desert tortoise may cause voiding behaviour. These results suggest that in order to minimise undesirable behavioural responses in studied desert tortoise populations, defined procedures or protocols must be followed by the investigators to reduce contact period to the extent feasible.
Shape-sensitive crystallization in colloidal superball fluids
Authors: Rossi Laura , Soni Vishal , Ashton Douglas J. , Pine David J. , Philipse Albert P. , Chaikin Paul M. , Dijkstra Marjolein , Sacanna Stefano , Irvine William T. M.
Published: April 2015

Significance

Since antiquity it has been known that particle shape plays an essential role in the symmetry and structure of matter. A familiar example comes from dense packings, such as spheres arranged in a face-centered cubic lattice. For colloidal superballs, we observe the transition from hexagonal to rhombic crystals consistent with the densest packings. In addition, we see the existence of square structures promoted by the presence of depletion attractions in the colloidal system. By using a mixture of depletants, one of which is size tunable, we induce solid-to-solid phase transitions between these phases. Our results introduce a general scenario where particle building blocks are designed to assemble not only into their maximum density states, but also into depletion-tunable interaction-dependent structures.
National hiring experiments reveal 2:1 faculty preference for women on STEM tenure track
Authors: Williams Wendy M. , Ceci Stephen J.
Published: April 2015

Significance

The underrepresentation of women in academic science is typically attributed, both in scientific literature and in the media, to sexist hiring. Here we report five hiring experiments in which faculty evaluated hypothetical female and male applicants, using systematically varied profiles disguising identical scholarship, for assistant professorships in biology, engineering, economics, and psychology. Contrary to prevailing assumptions, men and women faculty members from all four fields preferred female applicants 2:1 over identically qualified males with matching lifestyles (single, married, divorced), with the exception of male economists, who showed no gender preference. Comparing different lifestyles revealed that women preferred divorced mothers to married fathers and that men preferred mothers who took parental leaves to mothers who did not. Our findings, supported by real-world academic hiring data, suggest advantages for women launching academic science careers.
Post-treatment control of HIV infection
Authors: Conway Jessica M. , Perelson Alan S.
Published: April 2015

Significance

Recent reports suggest that antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiated early after HIV infection increases the likelihood of post-treatment control (PTC) in which plasma virus remains undetectable after treatment cessation. However, only a small fraction of patients treated early attain PTC. We develop a mathematical model of HIV infection that provides insight into these phenomena, suggesting that treatments restricting or reducing the latent reservoir size may allow immune responses to control infection posttreatment. Our model makes predictions about immune response strengths and latent reservoir sizes needed for a patient taken off treatment to exhibit PTC that may help guide future studies.
Community clusters of tsunami vulnerability in the US Pacific Northwest
Authors: Wood Nathan J. , Jones Jeanne , Spielman Seth , Schmidtlein Mathew C.
Published: April 2015

Significance

We present an analytical framework for understanding community-level vulnerability to tsunamis that integrates population exposure, demographic sensitivity, and evacuation potential.We identify three types of communities along the US Pacific Northwest coast that are directly threatened by tsunamis associated with a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake: (
i
) demographically diverse with low numbers of exposed people, (
ii
) high numbers of exposed populations but sufficient time to evacuate, and (
iii
) moderate numbers of exposed populations but insufficient time to evacuate. This approach is a significant advance over current practice because traditional measures of social vulnerability do not relate population structure to specific hazard characteristics. Results help managers to develop risk reduction strategies that are tailored to local conditions and needs.
Understanding scaling through history-dependent processes with collapsing sample space
Authors: Corominas-Murtra Bernat , Hanel Rudolf , Thurner Stefan
Published: April 2015

Significance

Many complex systems reduce their flexibility over time in the sense that the number of options (possible states) diminishes over time. We show that rank distributions of the visits to these states that emerge from such processes are exact power laws with an exponent −1 (Zipf’s law). When noise is added to such processes, meaning that from time to time they can also increase the number of their options, the rank distribution remains a power law, with an exponent that is related to the noise level in a remarkably simple way. Sample-space-reducing processes provide a new route to understand the phenomenon of scaling and provide an alternative to the known mechanisms of self-organized criticality, multiplicative processes, or preferential attachment.
Metatranscriptome analyses indicate resource partitioning between diatoms in the field
Authors: Alexander Harriet , Jenkins Bethany D. , Rynearson Tatiana A. , Dyhrman Sonya T.
Published: April 2015

Significance

Nutrient availability plays a central role in driving the activities and large-scale distributions of phytoplankton, yet there are still fundamental gaps in understanding how phytoplankton metabolize nutrients, like nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), and how this metabolic potential is modulated in field populations. Here, we show that cooccurring diatoms in a dynamic coastal marine system have apparent differences in their metabolic capacity to use N and P. Further, bioinformatic approaches enabled the identification and species-specific comparison of resource-responsive (RR) genes. Variation of these RR gene sets highlights the disparate transcriptional responses these species have to the same environment, which likely reflects the role resource partitioning has in facilitating the vast diversity of the phytoplankton.
Dynamics of change in multiethnic societies: An archaeological perspective from colonial North America
Authors: Lightfoot Kent G.
Published: April 2015

This Perspective presents an overview of the archaeology of pluralistic colonies (approximately late 1500s–1800s) in North America. It complements the other special feature papers in this issue on ancient societies in Mesoamerica, the Near East, the Armenian Highlands, Peru, and China by presenting another body of literature for examining the dynamics of change in multiethnic societies from a different time and place. In synthesizing archaeological investigations of mercantile, plantation, and missionary colonies, this Perspective shows how this research is relevant to the study of pluralism in both historic and ancient societies in three ways. (
i
) It enhances our understanding of interethnic relationships that took place in complex societies with imposing political hierarchies and labor structures. (
ii
) It helps us to refine the methods used by archaeologists to define and analyze multiethnic communities that were spatially delimited by ethnic neighborhoods. Finally, (
iii
) it presents more than a half century of experimentation with various models (e.g., acculturation, creolization, ethnogenesis, and hybridity) that have been used to study the dynamics of culture change in multiethnic societies.
Meteorite-catalyzed syntheses of nucleosides and of other prebiotic compounds from formamide under proton irradiation
Authors: Saladino Raffaele , Carota Eleonora , Botta Giorgia , Kapralov Mikhail , Timoshenko Gennady N. , Rozanov Alexei Y. , Krasavin Eugene , Di Mauro Ernesto
Published: April 2015

Significance

Modern research on the origin of life started with Urey–Miller’s 1953 report on the spontaneous formation of amino acids upon application of electric discharge on a model of the pristine Earth atmosphere. Formamide provides a chemically sound starting material for the syntheses of prebiotic compounds; its role in prebiotics is becoming recognized. Kiloparsecs-wide clouds of formamide were observed in the interstellar space. The energy sources for the syntheses explored so far were largely thermal, and the catalysts used were mostly terrestrial. In the presence of meteorites and with high-energy protons, we observe the production of unprecedented panels of nucleobases, sugars, and, most notably, nucleosides. Carboxylic acids and amino acids complete the recipe. These findings extend prebiotic plausible scenarios well beyond our planet.
Host attachment and fluid shear are integrated into a mechanical signal regulating virulence in
Escherichia coli
O157:H7
Authors: Alsharif Ghadah , Ahmad Sadia , Islam Md Shahidul , Shah Riddhi , Busby Stephen J. , Krachler Anne Marie
Published: April 2015

Significance

Enterohemorrhagic
Escherichia coli
(EHEC) is a foodborne pathogen that can cause bloody diarrhea and hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to severe clinical complications such as kidney failure. The main factors triggering disease are well known and include type 3 secreted effectors, adhesins, and Shiga toxins. Much less is known about how these factors are induced in response to the environmental transition that bacteria experience during transfer into and passage through the host. We show here that although positive regulators of virulence are induced during passage through the host, they are only activated to increase virulence as a result of force generated by host cell contact. Thus, mechanosensation is a way of integrating multifactorial environmental cues to fine-tune virulence regulation.
Induced transcription and stability of CELF2 mRNA drives widespread alternative splicing during T-cell signaling
Authors: Mallory Michael J. , Allon Samuel J. , Qiu Jinsong , Gazzara Matthew R. , Tapescu Iulia , Martinez Nicole M. , Fu Xiang-Dong , Lynch Kristen W.
Published: April 2015

Significance

Alternative splicing is a key mechanism for gene regulation that is regulated in response to developmental and antigen signaling in T cells. However, the extent and mechanisms of regulated splicing, particularly during T-cell development, have not been well characterized. Here we demonstrate that expression of the RNA binding protein CELF2 (CUGBP, Elav-like family member 2) is increased in response to T-cell signaling through the combined regulation of transcription and mRNA stability. This increase in CELF2 expression drives widespread changes in mRNA splicing in cultured T cells and correlates with changes in mRNA splicing during T-cell development. These results provide unprecedented insight into the regulation of splicing during thymic development, and reveal an important biologic role of CELF2 in human T cells.
Hyperammonemia in gene-targeted mice lacking functional hepatic glutamine synthetase
Authors: Qvartskhava Natalia , Lang Philipp A. , Görg Boris , Pozdeev Vitaly I. , Ortiz Marina Pascual , Lang Karl S. , Bidmon Hans J. , Lang Elisabeth , Leibrock Christina B. , Herebian Diran , Bode Johannes G. , Lang Florian , Häussinger Dieter
Published: April 2015

Significance

Ammonia metabolism in the liver is critical to prevent serious clinical conditions, such as hepatic encephalopathy. It was hypothesized that the Gln synthetase (GS) can metabolize ammonia with high affinity in the perivenous region of the liver. However, the in vivo relevance of this metabolic pathway remains unclear in view of other intra- and extrahepatic ammonia metabolizing pathways. Here, we show by creating a conditional GS KO mouse that specific deletion of the GS in the liver results in increased ammonia levels in the blood, induction of oxidative stress in brain tissue, and behavior abnormalities. In conclusion, GS in the liver is a key player in the maintenance of ammonia homeostasis.
Microgrooves and fluid flows provide preferential passageways for sperm over pathogen
Tritrichomonas foetus
Authors: Tung Chih-kuan , Hu Lian , Fiore Alyssa G. , Ardon Florencia , Hickman Dillon G. , Gilbert Robert O. , Suarez Susan S. , Wu Mingming
Published: April 2015

Significance

Mammalian females must selectively allow sperm with normal morphology and motility to ascend the reproductive tract while rejecting invasion of pathogens. By using microfluidic modeling, we revealed that microgrooves and gentle fluid flows, two major biophysical characteristics of the female tract, synergistically provide preferential pathways for sperm. In contrast, the sexually transmitted pathogen,
Tritrichomonas foetus
, is swept away from these pathways. These findings are not only valuable to dairy and beef industries for maximizing fertility and suppressing disease, but also to human medicine, because the morphology and movement of bull sperm closely resemble those of human sperm, and
T. foetus
closely resembles
Trichomonas vaginalis
, which infects 170 million people annually worldwide.
Metabolic reprogramming in triple-negative breast cancer through Myc suppression of TXNIP
Authors: Shen Liangliang , O’Shea John M. , Kaadige Mohan R. , Cunha Stéphanie , Wilde Blake R. , Cohen Adam L. , Welm Alana L. , Ayer Donald E.
Published: April 2015

Significance

Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBCs) are aggressive with poor clinical outcomes. Understanding the pathways that control their aggressive growth may reveal new targets for therapeutic intervention. TNBCs are highly glycolytic, providing fuel for growth promoting biosynthetic pathways. We establish that the c-Myc transcription factor drives this metabolic phenotype. Classically, the c-Myc proto-oncogene drives glycolysis by activating target genes encoding glycolytic enzymes and glucose transporters; however, we show here that c-Myc represses the expression of thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP), which is a potent blocker of glucose utilization. Thus, c-Myc’s repression of TXNIP provides an additional route to c-Myc–driven glucose metabolism. Highlighting the clinical significance of our finding, a Myc
high
/TXNIP
low
gene signature correlates with poor overall survival in TNBC but not in other subclasses of breast cancer.
Meteorite zircon constraints on the bulk Lu−Hf isotope composition and early differentiation of the Earth
Authors: Iizuka Tsuyoshi , Yamaguchi Takao , Hibiya Yuki , Amelin Yuri
Published: April 2015

Significance

The radioactive decay of lutetium-176 to hafnium-176 has been used to study Earth’s crust−mantle differentiation that is the primary agent of the chemical and thermal evolution of the silicate Earth. Yet the data interpretation requires a well-defined hafnium isotope growth curve of the bulk Earth, which is notoriously difficult to reconstruct from the variable bulk compositions of undifferentiated chondrite meteorites. Here we use lutetium–hafnium systematics of meteorite zircon crystals to define the initial hafnium isotope composition of the Solar System and further to identify pristine chondrites that are the best representative of the lutetium–hafnium system of the bulk Earth. The established bulk Earth growth curve provides evidence for Earth’s crust−mantle differentiation as early as 4.5 billion years ago.
Volcanic history of the Imbrium basin: A close-up view from the lunar rover Yutu
Authors: Zhang Jinhai , Yang Wei , Hu Sen , Lin Yangting , Fang Guangyou , Li Chunlai , Peng Wenxi , Zhu Sanyuan , He Zhiping , Zhou Bin , Lin Hongyu , Yang Jianfeng , Liu Enhai , Xu Yuchen , Wang Jianyu , Yao Zhenxing , Zou Yongliao , Yan Jun , Ouyang Ziyuan
Published: April 2015

Significance

After the Apollo and Luna missions, which were flown about 40 years ago, the Moon was explored only from orbit. In addition, no samples were returned from the young and high-FeO and TiO
2
mare basalt in the northern Imbrium basin. Such samples are important to understand the formation and evolution of the Procellarum KREEP [potassium (K), rare earth elements (REE), and phosphorus (P)] terrain, a key terrain highly enriched in radioactive nuclides. The Chang’e-3 mission carried out the first in situ analyses of chemical and mineral compositions of the lunar soil and ground-based measurements of the lunar regolith and the underlying basalt units at this specific site. The lunar regolith layer recorded the surface processes of the Moon, whereas the basalt units recorded the volcanic eruption history.
Plant immunity triggered by engineered in vivo release of oligogalacturonides, damage-associated molecular patterns
Authors: Benedetti Manuel , Pontiggia Daniela , Raggi Sara , Cheng Zhenyu , Scaloni Flavio , Ferrari Simone , Ausubel Frederick M. , Cervone Felice , De Lorenzo Giulia
Published: April 2015

Significance

Damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), released from host tissues as a consequence of pathogen attack, have been proposed as endogenous activators of immune responses in both animals and plants. Oligogalacturonides (OGs), oligomers of α-1,4–linked galacturonic acid generated in vitro by the partial hydrolysis of pectin, have been shown to function as potent elicitors of immunity when they are applied exogenously to plant tissues. However, there is no direct evidence that OGs can be produced in vivo or that they function as immune elicitors. This report provides the missing evidence that OGs can be generated
in planta
and can function as DAMPs in the activation of plant immunity.
Mechanically-driven phase separation in a growing bacterial colony
Authors: Ghosh Pushpita , Mondal Jagannath , Ben-Jacob Eshel , Levine Herbert
Published: April 2015

Significance

Bacteria self-organize into a dense multicellular community known as a biofilm, in which cells are embedded in self-secreted extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs). A number of processes can contribute to spatial heterogeneity in a growing biofilm; among them, the effect of macromolecular crowding enhanced by the EPSs has largely remained unexplored. To understand the effect of macromolecular crowding in spontaneous spatial organization, we develop a computational model to investigate the explicit role of mechanical interactions in driving the collective behavior of bacterial cells in the presence of EPS particles in a colony growing on a solid substrate. Our findings demonstrate that an entropy-driven depletion interaction between bacteria and EPSs can induce significant phase separation and spatial heterogeneity in a biofilm.
Probing the energetics of organic–nanoparticle interactions of ethanol on calcite
Authors: Wu Di , Navrotsky Alexandra
Published: April 2015

Significance

Organic ligand–inorganic nanoparticle (NP) interactions are crucial in both natural and engineering conditions. This paper reports a rich energetics of organic–NP binding as a function of molecular coverage for ethanol–nanocalcite system. A stepwise, yet gradually and continuously evolved energetics from weak associating to strong bonding to classical capping is revealed. Such information may reinforce our understanding of complex phenomena at organic–NP interfaces, and may also aid exploratory material scientists by providing solid, fundamental thermodynamic insights.
Tipicità delle costruzioni presentative per l’italiano neostandard
Authors: Marzo Stefania , Crocco Claudia
Published: April 2015

The aim of this paper is to examine the distribution of presentative constructions in contemporary Italian and to verify whether their occurrence depends on language external factors. Presentative constructions have been studied particularly by Italian linguists during the Eighties, and were defined as being ‘typical’ of so-called Neostandard Italian. The analysis is based on three corpora of contemporary Italian, viz. two oral corpora (LIP and CLIPS) and one written corpus (CORIS/CODIS).

Counter to expectations, presentative constructions are far from frequent in contemporary Italian and therefore cannot be considered as being ‘typical’ of Neostandard Italian. They are, however, attested both in written and oral Italian, with a clear preference for the latter context, in which they are evenly distributed in formal and informal registers. We conclude by discussing the differences between the linguistic phenomena traditionally included into the ‘feature pool’ of Neostandard Italian.
Beneficial Effects of Rhodotorula sp. C11 on Growth and Disease Resistance of Juvenile Japanese Spiky Sea Cucumber Apostichopus japonicus
Authors: Yang ZhiPing , Sun JianMing , Xu Zhe
Published: April 2015

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary administration of the live yeast, Rhodotorula sp. C11, on growth and disease resistance against Vibrio splendidus infection in juvenile Japanese spiky sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus. Sea cucumbers were fed diets containing Rhodotorula sp. C11 at 0 (control), 104, 105, and 106 CFU/g of feed for 45 d. There were three replicate tanks per dietary treatment. The specific growth rates were higher in all sea cucumbers treated with Rhodotorula sp. C11 than in the controls. Following a challenge with V. splendidus NB13, the cumulative prevalence and mortality of sea cucumbers fed diets supplemented with Rhodotorula sp. C11 were lower than in animals fed the basal diet. In sea cucumbers fed diets supplemented with Rhodotorula sp. C11 for 42 d, the only viable yeast found in the intestine was Rhodotorula sp. C11, which had counts of 1.58–1.98 × 104 CFU/g. No yeast was isolated from the intestine of animals fed the basal diet. For the colonization study, 20 sea cucumbers from each dietary treatment were removed to separate tanks and fed the control diet from day 16 to day 46. The viable yeast (Rhodotorula sp. C11) counts in the intestine decreased to 60–80 CFU/g by day 37. Moreover, as demonstrated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis, Rhodotorula sp. C11 colonization of the intestine could be detected until day 46. The differences in culture and PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis may be due to differences in the sensitivity of both methods. The present result showed that Rhodotorula sp. C11 was able to successfully colonize the intestine of juvenile Japanese spiky sea cucumbers by dietary supplementation, which improved its growth and disease resistance.

Received August 11, 2014; accepted November 14, 2014
Backstop technology: model keystone or energy systems transition guide
Authors: Verbruggen Aviel
Published: April 2015

Few papers by young academics have been as influential on energy economics as ‘The Allocation of Energy Resources’ by William Nordhaus (1973). To me, the influence of Nordhaus' work causes mixed feelings. His ‘backstop technology’ concept is a source of inspiration. Although mainly used as keystone to seal his model, his square choice for nuclear power as backstop supply was unfounded. The enduring influence of ‘econometric-engineering’ models on public energy policy-makers often precludes a necessary broader decision-making approach.
Linking Behavior, Physiology, and Survival of Atlantic Salmon Smolts During Estuary Migration
Authors: Stich Daniel S. , Zydlewski Gayle B. , Kocik John F. , Zydlewski Joseph D.
Published: April 2015

Decreased marine survival is identified as a component driver of continued declines of Atlantic Salmon Salmo salar. However, estimates of marine mortality often incorporate loss incurred during estuary migration that may be mechanistically distinct from factors affecting marine mortality. We examined movements and survival of 941 smolts (141 wild and 800 hatchery-reared fish) released in freshwater during passage through the Penobscot River estuary, Maine, from 2005 to 2013. We related trends in estuary arrival date, movement rate, and survival to fish characteristics, migratory history, and environmental conditions in the estuary. Fish that experienced the warmest thermal history arrived in the estuary 8 d earlier than those experiencing the coolest thermal history during development. Estuary arrival date was 10 d later for fish experiencing high flow than for fish experiencing low flow. Fish released furthest upstream arrived in the estuary 3 d later than those stocked further downstream but moved 0.5 km/h faster through the estuary. Temporally, movement rate and survival in the estuary both peaked in mid-May. Spatially, movement rate and survival both decreased from freshwater to the ocean. Wild smolts arrived in the estuary later than hatchery fish, but we observed no change in movement rate or survival attributable to rearing history. Fish with the highest gill Na+, K+-ATPase activity incurred 25% lower mortality through the estuary than fish with the lowest gill Na+, K+-ATPase activity. Smolt survival decreased (by up to 40%) with the increasing number of dams passed (ranging from two to nine) during freshwater migration. These results underscore the importance of physiological preparedness on performance and the delayed, indirect effects of dams on survival of Atlantic Salmon smolts during estuary migration, ultimately affecting marine survival estimates.

Received October 25, 2014; accepted January 8, 2015
Emotions, loss and change: Armenian women and post-socialist transformations in Nagorny Karabakh
Authors: Shahnazarian Nona , Ziemer Ulrike
Published: April 2015

Based on empirical data obtained from ethnographic fieldwork in Nagorny Karabakh (NK), the article analyses gender as one fundamental but neglected dimension of post-conflict society. In particular, this article examines changing gender relations as a result of the political transformations occurring during and after the Karabakh conflict (1990-2000). The focus is on two groups of women residing in Martuni, a small town in NK. The first group includes local Armenian women, the second Armenian women from Azerbaijan, forced to resettle in Martuni. In this way, the article not only explores how the status of these women and their dependency has changed as a result of the political transformations, but also how gender roles and identities are negotiated when the region of resettlement is not completely unfamiliar to new arrivals. The article concludes by highlighting these Armenian women’s contradictory, yet similar experiences in terms of prevalent gender constructions. In doing so, the article expands research on gender and political transformations in post-socialist regions and beyond.
Flow-induced protein kinase A–CREB pathway acts via BMP signaling to promote HSC emergence
Authors: Kim Peter Geon , Nakano Haruko , Das Partha P. , Chen Michael J. , Rowe R. Grant , Chou Stephanie S. , Ross Samantha J. , Sakamoto Kathleen M. , Zon Leonard I. , Schlaeger Thorsten M. , Orkin Stuart H. , Nakano Atsushi , Daley George Q.
Published: April 2015

Fluid shear stress promotes the emergence of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in the aorta–gonad–mesonephros (AGM) of the developing mouse embryo. We determined that the AGM is enriched for expression of targets of protein kinase A (PKA)–cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB), a pathway activated by fluid shear stress. By analyzing CREB genomic occupancy from chromatin-immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) data, we identified the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathway as a potential regulator of CREB. By chemical modulation of the PKA–CREB and BMP pathways in isolated AGM VE-cadherin+ cells from mid-gestation embryos, we demonstrate that PKA–CREB regulates hematopoietic engraftment and clonogenicity of hematopoietic progenitors, and is dependent on secreted BMP ligands through the type I BMP receptor. Finally, we observed blunting of this signaling axis using Ncx1-null embryos, which lack a heartbeat and intravascular flow. Collectively, we have identified a novel PKA–CREB–BMP signaling pathway downstream of shear stress that regulates HSC emergence in the AGM via the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition.
Adenosine signaling promotes hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell emergence
Authors: Jing Lili , Tamplin Owen J. , Chen Michael J. , Deng Qing , Patterson Shenia , Kim Peter G. , Durand Ellen M. , McNeil Ashley , Green Julie M. , Matsuura Shinobu , Ablain Julien , Brandt Margot K. , Schlaeger Thorsten M. , Huttenlocher Anna , Daley George Q. , Ravid Katya , Zon Leonard I.
Published: April 2015

Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) emerge from aortic endothelium via the endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition (EHT). The molecular mechanisms that initiate and regulate EHT remain poorly understood. Here, we show that adenosine signaling regulates hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell (HSPC) development in zebrafish embryos. The adenosine receptor A2b is expressed in the vascular endothelium before HSPC emergence. Elevated adenosine levels increased runx1+/cmyb+ HSPCs in the dorsal aorta, whereas blocking the adenosine pathway decreased HSPCs. Knockdown of A2b adenosine receptor disrupted scl+ hemogenic vascular endothelium and the subsequent EHT process. A2b adenosine receptor activation induced CXCL8 via cAMP–protein kinase A (PKA) and mediated hematopoiesis. We further show that adenosine increased multipotent progenitors in a mouse embryonic stem cell colony-forming assay and in embryonic day 10.5 aorta-gonad-mesonephros explants. Our results demonstrate that adenosine signaling plays an evolutionary conserved role in the first steps of HSPC formation in vertebrates.
Survival in an Incident Cohort of Patients with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in Denmark
Authors: Korsholm Kasper , Andersen Asger , Kirkfeldt Rikke E. , Hansen Knud N. , Mellemkjær Søren , Nielsen‐Kudsk Jens Erik
Published: April 2015

We aimed to characterize and estimate survival rates in patients diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in western Denmark in the modern management era. All incident cases of PAH were consecutively enrolled in our single‐center prospective cohort study between January 2000 and March 2012. A total of 134 patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria were followed up from first diagnostic right heart catheterization to either death or the end of the study. Kaplan‐Meier survival analysis was used to estimate 1‐, 3‐, and 5‐year survival rates with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Survival in the total cohort was 86.4% (95% CI, 79.3%–91.2%) after 1 year, 72.9% (95% CI, 64.1%–79.9%) after 3 years, and 65.4% (95% CI, 55.8%–73.4%) after 5 years. Significantly better survival was seen in the group of patients with PAH associated with congenital heart disease than in the group of patients with idiopathic PAH, heritable PAH, connective tissue disease, HIV infection, and portal hypertension. In conclusion, survival rates in the Danish PAH population were similar to or slightly better than survival rates estimated in other modern registries. However, PAH remains a fatal disease, despite modern targeted therapies.
Reconciling stock assessment paradigms to better inform fisheries management
Authors: Stewart Ian J. , Martell Steven J. D.
Published: April 2015

For several decades, the fisheries stock assessment paradigms of virtual population analysis (VPA) and statistical catch-at-age (SCA) models have been routinely applied to major fish stocks, and their prevalence often dictated by historical continuity, local experience, and geographical differences in standard practices. Similarly, there is a growing split among models using short and long time-series. In one approach, only the recent time-series, where the data are relatively complete, and the assumptions about stationarity in population and sampling processes are relatively simple, are included. In the other, long time-series include far more historical data, but necessitate the relaxation of many common assumptions regarding stationarity. Unlike scientific paradigms in fields outside of fisheries science where empirical validation can provide a growing body of irrefutable evidence (such as physics), there is no expectation that some “truth” will emerge or that a single best stock assessment modelling approach will ultimately displace the others. The 2013 Pacific halibut SCA stock assessment, with the addition of a VPA-based analysis, is used to illustrate how an ensemble approach can represent a more complete description of the uncertainty in management quantities, relative to selecting just one of these competing model paradigms. We suggest that risk assessment for fisheries management, based on stock assessment models, should seek to avoid binary decisions about which models to include, and instead seek better approaches to incorporate alternative models. The ensemble approach to stock assessment also provides a conceptual link between traditional “best model” analyses and fully developed management strategy evaluation of harvest policy and management procedures.
Accelerated expansion from cosmological holography
Authors: van Putten Maurice H. P. M.
Published: April 2015

It is shown that holographic cosmology implies an evolving Hubble radius $c^{-1}\dot{R}_{\rm H} = -1 + 3\Omega _{\rm m}$ in the presence of a dimensionless matter density Ωm scaled to the closure density 3H2/8πG, where c denotes the velocity of light and H and G denote the Hubble parameter and Newton's constant. It reveals a dynamical dark energy and a sixfold increase in gravitational attraction to matter on the scale of the Hubble acceleration. It reproduces the transition redshift zt ≃ 0.4 to the present epoch of accelerated expansion and is consistent with (q0, (dq/dz)0) of the deceleration parameter q(z) = q0 + (dq/dz)0z observed in Type Ia supernovae.
Constraining the extension of a possible gamma-ray halo of 3C 279 from 2008–2014 solar occultations
Authors: Kotelnikov Egor , Rubtsov Grigory , Troitsky Sergey
Published: April 2015

The angular extension of the gamma-ray image of 3C 279 may be constrained by studying its solar occultations as suggested by Fairbairn et al. We perform this kind of analysis for seven occultations observed by Fermi-LAT in 2008–2014, using the Fermi-LAT solar system tools. The results are interpreted in terms of models with extended gamma-ray halo of 3C 279; first constraints on the size and the flux of the halo are reported.
Discovery of GRS 1915+105 variability patterns in the Rapid Burster
Authors: Bagnoli T. , in 't Zand J. J. M.
Published: April 2015

We report the discovery of two new types of variability in the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary MXB 1730−335 (the ‘Rapid Burster’). In one observation in 1999, it exhibits a large-amplitude quasi-periodic oscillation with a period of about 7 min. In another observation in 2008, it exhibits two 4-min-long 75 per cent deep dips 44 min apart. These two kinds of variability are very similar to the so-called ρ or heartbeat variability and the θ variability, respectively, seen in the black hole low-mass X-ray binaries GRS 1915+105 and IGR J17091−3624. This shows that these types of behaviour are unrelated to a black hole nature of the accretor. Our findings also show that these kinds of behaviour need not take place at near-Eddington accretion rates. We speculate that they may rather be related to the presence of a relatively wide orbit with an orbital period in excess of a few days and about the relation between these instabilities and the type II bursts.
Informed Consent to Treatment
Authors: van Staden C.W.
Published: April 2015

The chapter clarifies the scope and conditions of informed consent before addressing capacity and incapacity to give informed consent, its clinical assessment, and some clinical examples. It underscores the crucial place of good process in both informed consent and the assessment of incapacity to give informed consent owing to mental disorder. Good process provides for the practical co-production of the necessary conditions of informed consent insofar as incapacity owing to mental disorder does not prevent these from pertaining. By good process, the assessment of such incapacity involves a clinical consideration of (1) the presence of mental disorder as well as the mental contents as affected by mental disorder that (2) are preventing the patient from (3) understanding the intervention, communicating, choosing decisively, or accepting the need for the intervention. By good process understanding may be nurtured, better communication ensured, undue influences identified and managed, and more certainty and acceptance developed and grown co-productively.
Ethics of Psychopharmacology
Authors: Stein Dan J. , van Niekerk Anton A.
Published: April 2015

This chapter focuses on philosophical aspects of clinical psychopharmacology, addressing key conceptual and ethical questions in the field. The chapter begins by reviewing some of the history of psychopharmacology, partly with the aim of emphasizing what we know and don’t know about psychiatric medications. It then discusses three clinical cases, each of which raises different ethical issues (e.g., should psychopharmacology be used given its harms, should psychopharmacology be preferred to psychotherapy, and should psychopharmacology be used for minor illnesses?). Finally it provides a conceptual framework for approaching these cases, a framework that attempts to integrate “classical” and “critical” approaches to science, psychiatry, and psychopharmacology. Along the way, the chapter addresses a number of other issues at the intersection of neuroethics and psychopharmacology, including the placebo response.
Animal Welfare Considerations and Ethical Oversight of the Use of Animals in Psychiatric Research
Authors: Pritt Stacy L. , Birnbaum Shari
Published: April 2015

Ethical issues arise with the use of animals in psychiatric and clinical neuroscience research due to the potential physical or psychological effects imposed on the animals, with the ethical debate focusing on the “cost-benefit” analysis of the animal use where cost is defined as animals experiencing negative events, either physical or emotional. The use of the cost-benefit analysis model combined with considerations for animal welfare that serve both to decrease any potential harm to the animal and increase benefits to human and animal health is a useful model for the ethical review and subsequent institutional approval of animal use. Recent mandates and the ongoing development of animal welfare science in the field of laboratory animal science allow institutional animal care and use committees (IACUCs) and other similar oversight committees and regulatory authorities world-wide effectively to construct and monitor research that balances cost with benefits at the institutional level.
Coercion and Contagion in Child and Adolescent Peer Relationships
Authors: Piehler Timothy F.
Published: April 2015

Peer relationships during adolescence play a powerful role in youth adjustment. This chapter summarizes research regarding two distinct yet related social processes that have been observed within adolescent peer interactions to be predictive of problem behaviors: coercion and contagion. The mechanisms underlying these two processes are outlined, including positive reinforcement involved in deviancy training (a form of contagion) as well as escape conditioning involved in coercion. The chapter details some of the commonalities between the two processes as seen in adolescence as well as key differences and risk factors unique to each. Several recent studies that simultaneously examined both coercion and contagion in peer interactions are highlighted. Finally, a number of future directions are outlined, including advancing analytic methods to better understand bidirectional effects and further investigating the role of these processes in internalizing symptoms in adolescence.
Peer Coercion and Electronic Messaging
Authors: Ehrenreich Samuel E. , Underwood Marion K.
Published: April 2015

This chapter examines how features of electronic communication (text messaging, Facebook, and Twitter) make it an ideal environment for peer influence, and how positive and negative peer reinforcement via electronic communication relates to the development and perpetuation of antisocial behavior. Electronic modes of communication allow youth to be in contact with their peer group instantaneously and continuously. The continuous access provided by electronic forms of communication may intensify the role of positive and negative reinforcement processes. Electronic communication extends youths’ ability to engage in the aversive behaviors that characterize peer coercion. This immediacy also permits less aversive, positive reinforcement processes—such as laughter and encouragement—to continue even when peers are not physically together. The role of text message communication in peer coercion and deviancy training is examined, and illustrative examples are presented. The challenges associated with measuring and observing children’s involvement with an ever-changing virtual landscape are also discussed.