bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Savannas are not old fields: Functional trajectories of forest expansion in a fire‐suppressed Brazilian savanna are driven by habitat generalists
Authors: Flake Samuel W. , Abreu Rodolfo C. R. , Durigan Giselda , Hoffmann William A. 
Published: May 2021

Abstract

Under fire suppression, many tropical savannas transform into forests. Forest expansion entails changes in environmental variables and plant community structure. We hypothesized that forest expansion into savanna results in a shift in community‐weighted mean functional traits from stress tolerance to competitiveness, with generalist species having trait values intermediate between those of specialists of savanna and forest habitats.

We studied 30 plots distributed over three savanna–forest boundaries undergoing forest expansion in the Brazilian Cerrado, capturing a gradient from open savanna to recently formed forest. We measured functional traits of 116 woody species of savanna specialist, generalist and forest specialist functional groups and quantified changes in species composition and mean traits across the basal area gradient.

We identified two main axes of species traits. The first separated forest and generalist species from savanna specialists, with the latter possessing traits associated with resistance to disturbance and stress— such as thick leaves, thick bark, slower height growth and lower shade tolerance. Our second trait axis separated shrubs and understorey trees from pioneer species. Generalist species’ traits did not differ substantially from forest species, nor did they tend to have a typical pioneer strategy.

Community‐weighted trait means changed linearly with forest development. There was a steady increase in traits associated with competitive dominance rather than stress tolerance and fire resistance, indicating a wholesale shift in the selective environment. Several of these patterns—for example, increasing height and decreasing light requirements—are common in old‐field succession. In contrast to old‐field succession, we found that SLA increased, leaf thickness decreased and wood density stayed constant.

The assembly of forests appears to be shaped by environmental filters that contribute to a functional trajectory distinct from most other studied ecosystems. Our results highlight the importance of the functional composition of the early community and of the early colonizers of the open environment. Differences between savanna and forest specialists reflect the selective effects of the contrasting environments, while the traits of generalists—and their interaction with environmental filters—drive the dynamics of forest expansion.

A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Maternal effects and fitness consequences of individual variation in bottlenose dolphins' ecological niche
Authors: Strickland Kasha , Mann Janet , Foroughirad Vivienne , Levengood Alexis L. , Frère Céline H. 
Published: May 2021

Abstract

The niche describes the ecological and social environment that an organism lives in, as well as the behavioural tactics used to interact with its environment. A species niche is key to both ecological and evolutionary processes, including speciation, and has therefore been a central focus in ecology.

Recent evidence, however, points to considerable individual variation in a species' or population's niche use, although how this variation evolves or is maintained remains unclear.

We used a large longitudinal dataset to investigate the drivers and maintenance of individual variation in bottlenose dolphins' Tursiops aduncus niche. Specifically, we (a) characterised the extent of individual differences in habitat use, (b) identified whether there were maternal effects associated with this variation and (c) investigated the relationship between habitat use and calving success, a component of reproductive fitness.

By examining patterns of habitat use, we provide evidence that individual dolphins vary consistently between one another in their niche. We further show that such individual variation is driven by a strong maternal effect. Finally, habitat use and calving success were not related, suggesting that use of different habitats results in similar fitness outcomes.

Niche partitioning, maintained by maternal effects, likely facilitates the coexistence of multiple ecotypes within this population.
Phenotypic plasticity is not a cline: Thermal physiology of an intertidal barnacle over 20° of latitude
Authors: Broitman Bernardo R. , Lagos Nelson A. , Opitz Tania , Figueroa Daniela , Maldonado Karin , Ricote Natalia , Lardies Marco A. 
Published: May 2021

Abstract

Our understanding of the plastic and evolutionary potential of ectothermic organisms and their populational impacts in the face of rapid global change remains limited. Studies attempting on the relationship between the magnitude of thermal variability across latitude and the degree of phenotypic plasticity exhibited by marine ectotherms are inconclusive. We state that the latter arises from the narrow range of thermal variability captured by the limited span of the latitudinal gradients studied to date.

Using a mechanistic ecophysiological approach and a satellite‐based assessment of the relevant environmental variables (i.e. temperature and food availability), we studied individuals of the intertidal barnacle Jehlius cirratus from seven local populations widely spread along the Humboldt current system that spanning two biogeographic regions. At the same time, we synthesized published information on the local abundance of our study species across a total of 76 sites representing 20° of latitude, and spanning from 18 to 42°S.

We examined the effects of latitude and environmental variability on metabolic rate plasticity, thermal tolerance (thermal breadth and thermal safety margins) and their impacts on the abundance of this widespread marine invertebrate.

We demonstrate that the phenotypic plasticity of metabolic rate in J. cirratus populations is not related to latitude. In turn, thermal breadth is explained by the temperature variability each population experiences. Furthermore, we found clinal variation with a poleward decrease of the critical thermal minimum, suggesting that episodic extreme low temperatures represent a ubiquitous selective force on the lower thermal limit for ectotherms.

Across our study gradient, plasticity patterns indicate that populations at the equatorial extreme are more vulnerable to a warming climate, while populations located in the biogeographic transitional zone (i.e. high environmental heterogeneity), on the centre of the gradient, display higher levels of phenotypic plasticity and may represent a genetic buffer for the effects of ocean warming. Together, our results suggest the existence of a fitness trade‐off involving the metabolic cost of plasticity and population density that is evident only across the vast latitudinal gradient examined.
The legacy of forest disturbance on stream ecosystem functioning
Authors: Frainer André , McKie Brendan G. 
Published: May 2021

Abstract

Forest clearance is a pervasive disturbance worldwide, but many of its impacts are regarded as transient, diminishing in intensity as forest recovers. However, forests can take decades to centuries to recover after severe disturbances, and temporal lags in recovery of ecosystem properties for different forest habitats are mostly unknown. This includes forest streams, where most studies of the impacts of forest clearance are restricted to the first years of recovery, typically finding that temporary increases in light and nutrient run‐off diminish as forest recovers. Implications of longer term changes remain little investigated.

In a space‐for‐time substitution experiment, we assessed changes in organic matter processing and in the functional and taxonomic composition of litter‐consuming detritivores along a riparian forest age gradient ranging from 1 to 120 years since last timber harvesting.

Variation in organic matter processing and detritivore functional diversity along the forest succession gradient were both expressed as second‐order polynomial relationships (peaking at ~50 years along the forest age gradient). Decomposition rates were lowest in both the more recently clear‐cut and older riparian forest streams.

Variation of litter decomposition rates among litter bags within streams, measured by the coefficient of variation, was lowest in recent clear‐cuts and increased linearly along the succession gradient. This result indicates higher within‐stream heterogeneity in decomposition rates in older forest streams.

Synthesis and applications. We found that the decomposition of leaf litter, a component of carbon cycling in forests, was higher in streams flowing through intermediately aged forest, and that several key attributes of the organisms regulating litter decomposition also varied systematically with forest age. These findings highlight the longer term consequences of forest succession following forest clear‐cutting for stream habitats. Our findings further illustrate complications arising from the use of forested sites as references for newly cleared sites without properly accounting for forest age, given conclusions regarding biotic responses will depend on the age of the reference forests. Finally, our results emphasise the potential of intensive forest management centred on vast, one‐time clear‐cutting events to drive long‐term homogenisation not only in forest age structure but also in the functioning of associated forest stream habitats.

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Degradation of Southeast Asian tropical peatlands and integrated strategies for their better management and restoration
Authors: Mishra Shailendra , Page Susan E. , Cobb Alexander R. , Lee Janice Ser Huay , Jovani‐Sancho Antonio Jonay , Sjögersten Sofie , Jaya Adi , Aswandi  , Wardle David A. 
Published: May 2021

Abstract

About half of the world's tropical peatlands occur in Southeast (SE) Asia, where they serve as a major carbon (C) sink. Nearly 80% of natural peatlands in this region have been deforested and drained, with the majority under plantations and agriculture. This conversion increases peat oxidation which contributes to rapid C loss to the atmosphere as greenhouse gas emissions and increases their vulnerability to fires which generate regional smoke haze that has severe impacts on human health. Attempts at restoring these systems to mitigate environmental problems have had limited success.

We review the current understanding of intact and degraded peatlands in SE Asia to help develop a way forward in restoring these ecosystems. As such, we critically examine them in terms of their biodiversity, C storage, hydrology and nutrients, paying attention to both above‐ground and below‐ground subsystems.

We then propose an approach for better management and restoration of degraded peatlands that involves explicit consideration of multiple interacting ecological factors and the involvement of local communities who rely on converted peatlands for their livelihood.

We make the case that as processes leading to peatland development involve modification of both above‐ground and below‐ground subsystems, an integrated approach that explicitly recognizes both subsystems and their interactions is key to successful tropical peatland management and restoration.

Synthesis and applications. Gaining a better understanding of not just carbon stores and their changes during peat degradation, but also an in‐depth understanding of the biota, nutrient dynamics, hydrology and biotic and abiotic feedbacks, is key to developing better solutions for the management and restoration of peatlands in Southeast Asia. Through the application of science‐ and nature‐based solutions that recognize the interactions among the above‐ground and below‐ground subsystems, and taking into account the livelihood needs of local people, we propose a way to mitigate the ongoing environmental damage that is occurring in these iconic and unique ecosystems.
Tempering hope with Intimate Knowledge: Contrasting emergences of the concept ‘uninfectious’ in HIV
Authors: Keogh Peter , Dodds Catherine 
Published: May 2021

AbstractIn this paper, we contrast two emergences of the concept of ‘uninfectious’ (that pharmaceuticals can render someone living with HIV non‐infectious) in HIV. First, using Novas’ framing of ‘political economies of hope’, we describe the deployment of ‘uninfectious’ as part of global health campaigns. Second, we draw on Raffles’ (International Social Science Journal, 2002, 54, 325) concept of ‘intimate knowledge’ to theorise our own account of ‘uninfectious’ through a re‐analysis of qualitative data comprising the intimate experiences of people living with or around HIV collected at various points over the last 25 years. Framed as intimate knowledge, ‘uninfectious’ becomes known through people’s multiple engagements with and developing understandings of HIV over a prolonged period. As contingent and specific, intimate knowledge does not register within the biomedical/scientific ontological system that underpins discourses of hope employed in global campaigns. The concept of intimate knowledge offers the potential to critique discourses of hope in biomedicine problematising claims to universality whilst enriching biomedical understandings with accounts of affective, embodied experience. Intimate knowledge may also provide a bridge between different epistemological traditions in the sociology of health and illness.
Molecular and morphological findings in a sample of oral surgery patients: What can we learn for multivariate concepts for age estimation?
Authors: Siahaan Tatjana , Reckert Alexandra , Becker Julia , Eickhoff Simon B. , Koop Barbara , Gündüz Tanju , Böhme Petra , Mayer Felix , Küppers Lisa , Wagner Wolfgang , Ritz‐Timme Stefanie 
Published: May 2021

AbstractIt has already been proposed that a combined use of different molecular and morphological markers of aging in multivariate models may result in a greater accuracy of age estimation. However, such an approach can be complex and expensive, and not every combination may be useful. The significance and usefulness of combined analyses of D‐aspartic acid in dentine, pentosidine in dentine, DNA methylation in buccal swabs at five genomic regions (PDE4C, RPA2, ELOVL2, DDO, and EDARADD), and third molar mineralization were tested by investigating a sample of 90 oral surgery patients. Machine learning models for age estimation were trained and evaluated, and the contribution of each parameter to multivariate models was tested by assessment of the predictor importance. For models based on D‐aspartic acid, pentosidine, and the combination of both, mean absolute errors (MAEs) of 2.93, 3.41, and 2.68 years were calculated, respectively. The additional inclusion of the five DNAm markers did not improve the results. The sole DNAm‐based model revealed a MAE of 4.14 years. In individuals under 28 years of age, the combination of the DNAm markers with the third molar mineralization stages reduced the MAE from 3.85 to 2.81 years. Our findings confirm that the combination of parameters in multivariate models may be very useful for age estimation. However, the inclusion of many parameters does not necessarily lead to better results. It is a task for future research to identify the best selection of parameters for the different requirements in forensic practice.
Blood alcohol screening and outcomes in trauma team activation patients at a level 1 trauma centre in New Zealand
Authors: Bentley Maria , Ah Yen Damien , Smith Alastair , Christey Grant 
Published: May 2021

AbstractObjectiveA causal relationship between alcohol consumption and injury exists and the prevalence of harmful alcohol intakes in New Zealand adults is high. The present study investigates compliance to blood alcohol (BA) screening policy and the epidemiological profile and hospital‐related outcomes of trauma team activation (TTA) patients with positive BA at a New Zealand level 1 trauma centre.MethodsA retrospective review of Midland Trauma Registry hospitalisation data between January 2012 and December 2019 was conducted. Eligible patients (n = 2168) were ≥15 years who received TTA at Waikato Hospital. BA screening rates, demographic and event information, injury severity and hospital‐related outcomes were examined.ResultsThe average BA screening rate was 94.0% (95% confidence interval 92.9–95.0%) and 17.9% of screened patients were BA+. BA+ patients were younger than BA− (34.7 and 40.5 years, P < 0.0001). More males than females (20.6 and 12.4%, P < 0.0001), Māori (30.8%) compared to non‐Māori (<16.0%) and unemployed/beneficiaries (33.4%) compared to employed patients (15.5%) were BA+. Road transport crashes accounted for the highest proportion (45.2%) but, in comparison there were higher odds of BA+ from interpersonal violence (odds ratio 4.48, P < 0.0001). No difference between BA+ and BA− was observed in survival rate, injury severity scores, length of intensive care and total hospital stay.ConclusionBetween 2012 and 2019, Waikato Hospital demonstrated high compliance to BA screening policy for TTA patients. Appropriate alcohol awareness initiatives that focus on road safety and interpersonal violence are required to reduce the preventable prevalence and burden of alcohol‐related trauma in the Waikato region.
All together now: Limitations and recommendations for the simultaneous analysis of all eukaryotic soil sequences
Authors: Jurburg Stephanie D. , Keil Petr , Singh Brajesh K. , Chase Jonathan M. 
Published: May 2021

AbstractThe soil environment contains a large, but historically underexplored, reservoir of biodiversity. Sequencing prokaryotic marker genes has become commonplace for the discovery and characterization of soil bacteria and archaea. Increasingly, this approach is also applied to eukaryotic marker genes to characterize the diversity and distribution of soil eukaryotes. However, understanding the properties and limitations of eukaryotic marker sequences is essential for correctly analysing, interpreting, and synthesizing the resulting data. Here, we illustrate several biases from sequencing data that affect measurements of biodiversity that arise from variation in morphology, taxonomy and phylogeny between organisms, as well as from sampling designs. We recommend analytical approaches to overcome these limitations, and outline how the benchmarking and standardization of sequencing protocols may improve the comparability of the data.
Exploring the vertebrate fauna of the Bird’s Head Peninsula (Indonesia, West Papua) through DNA barcodes
Authors: Arida Evy , Ashari Hidayat , Dahruddin Hadi , Fitriana Yuli Sulistya , Hamidy Amir , Irham Mohammad , Kadarusman  , Riyanto Awal , Wiantoro Sigit , Zein Moch Syamsul Arifin , Hadiaty Renny K. , Apandi  , Krey Frengky , Kurnianingsih  , Melmambessy Edy H.P. , Mulyadi  , Ohee Henderite L. , Saidin  , Salamuk Ayub , Sauri Sopian , Suparno  , Supriatna Nanang , Suruwaky Amir M. , Laksono Wahyudi Tri , Warikar Evie L. , Wikanta Hadi , Yohanita Aksamina M. , Slembrouck Jacques , Legendre Marc , Gaucher Philippe , Cochet Christophe , Delrieu‐Trottin Erwan , Thébaud Christophe , Mila Borja , Fouquet Antoine , Borisenko Alex , Steinke Dirk , Hocdé Régis , Semiadi Gono , Pouyaud Laurent , Hubert Nicolas 
Published: May 2021

AbstractBiodiversity knowledge is widely heterogeneous across the Earth's biomes. Some areas, due to their remoteness and difficult access, present large taxonomic knowledge gaps. Mostly located in the tropics, these areas have frequently experienced a fast development of anthropogenic activities during the last decades and are therefore of high conservation concerns. The biodiversity hotspots of Southeast Asia exemplify the stakes faced by tropical countries. While the hotspots of Sundaland (Java, Sumatra, Borneo) and Wallacea (Sulawesi, Moluccas) have long attracted the attention of biologists and conservationists alike, extensive parts of the Sahul area, in particular the island of New Guinea, have been much less explored biologically. Here, we describe the results of a DNA‐based inventory of aquatic and terrestrial vertebrate communities, which was the objective of a multidisciplinary expedition to the Bird's Head Peninsula (West Papua, Indonesia) conducted between 17 October and 20 November 2014. This expedition resulted in the assembly of 1005 vertebrate DNA barcodes. Based on the use of multiple species‐delimitation methods (GMYC, PTP, RESL, ABGD), 264 molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) were delineated, among which 75 were unidentified and an additional 48 were considered cryptic. This study suggests that the diversity of vertebrates of the Bird's Head is severely underestimated and considerations on the evolutionary origin and taxonomic knowledge of these biotas are discussed.
Updated APLAR consensus statements on care for patients with rheumatic diseases during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Tam Lai‐Shan , Tanaka Yoshiya , Handa Rohini , Li Zhanguo , Lorenzo Jose Paulo , Louthrenoo Worawit , Hill Catherine , Pile Kevin , Robinson Philip C. , Dans Leonila F. , Hsu Li Yang , Lee Sang‐Min , Cho Jiacai , Hasan A. T. M. Tanveer , Salim Babur , Samreen Saba , Shaharir Syahrul Sazliyana , Wong Priscilla , Chau Jeffrey , Danda Debashish , Haq Syed Atiqul 
Published: May 2021

AbstractAimTo update previous guidance of the Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology (APLAR) on the management of patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic.MethodsResearch questions were formulated focusing on diagnosis and treatment of adult patients with RMD within the context of the pandemic, including the management of RMD in patients who developed COVID‐19. MEDLINE was searched for eligible studies to address the questions, and the APLAR COVID‐19 task force convened 2 meetings through video conferencing to discuss its findings and integrate best available evidence with expert opinion. Consensus statements were finalized using the modified Delphi process.ResultsAgreement was obtained around key aspects of screening for or diagnosis of COVID‐19; management of patients with RMD without confirmed COVID‐19; and management of patients with RMD with confirmed COVID‐19. The task force achieved consensus on 25 statements covering the potential risk of acquiring COVID‐19 in RMD patients, advice on RMD medication adjustment and continuation, the roles of telemedicine and vaccination, and the impact of the pandemic on quality of life and on treatment adherence.ConclusionsAvailable evidence primarily from descriptive research supported new recommendations for aspects of RMD care not covered in the previous document, particularly with regard to risk factors for complicated COVID‐19 in RMD patients, modifications to RMD treatment regimens in the context of the pandemic, and COVID‐19 vaccination in patients with RMD.