bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Chronic exposure to a neonicotinoid pesticide alters the interactions between bumblebees and wild plants
Authors: Stanley Dara A. , Raine Nigel E. 
Published: March 2016

Summary

Insect pollinators are essential for both the production of a large proportion of world crops and the health of natural ecosystems. As important pollinators, bumblebees must learn to forage on flowers to feed both themselves and provision their colonies.

Increased use of pesticides has caused concern over sublethal effects on bees, such as impacts on reproduction or learning ability. However, little is known about how sublethal exposure to field‐realistic levels of pesticide might affect the ability of bees to visit and manipulate flowers.

We observed the behaviour of individual bumblebees from colonies chronically exposed to a neonicotinoid pesticide (10 ppb thiamethoxam) or control solutions foraging for the first time on an array of morphologically complex wildflowers (Lotus corniculatus and Trifolium repens) in an outdoor flight arena.

We found that more bees released from pesticide‐treated colonies became foragers, and that they visited more L. corniculatus flowers than controls. Interestingly, bees exposed to pesticide collected pollen more often than controls, but control bees learnt to handle flowers efficiently after fewer learning visits than bees exposed to pesticide. There were also different initial floral preferences of our treatment groups; control bees visited a higher proportion of T. repens flowers, and bees exposed to pesticide were more likely to choose L. corniculatus on their first visit.

Our results suggest that the foraging behaviour of bumblebees on real flowers can be altered by sublethal exposure to field‐realistic levels of pesticide. This has implications for the foraging success and persistence of bumblebee colonies, but perhaps more importantly for the interactions between wild plants and flower‐visiting insects and ability of bees to deliver the crucial pollination services to plants necessary for ecosystem functioning.
Cost‐effective monitoring of biological invasions under global change: a model‐based framework
Authors: Vicente Joana R. , Alagador Diogo , Guerra Carlos , Alonso Joaquim M. , Kueffer Christoph , Vaz Ana S. , Fernandes Rui F. , Cabral João A. , Araújo Miguel B. , Honrado João P. 
Published: March 2016

Summary

Ecological monitoring programmes are designed to detect and measure changes in biodiversity and ecosystems. In the case of biological invasions, they can contribute to anticipating risks and adaptively managing invaders. However, monitoring is often expensive because large amounts of data might be needed to draw inferences. Thus, careful planning is required to ensure that monitoring goals are realistically achieved.

Species distribution models (SDMs) can provide estimates of suitable areas to invasion. Predictions from these models can be applied as inputs in optimization strategies seeking to identify the optimal extent of the networks of areas required for monitoring risk of invasion under current and future environmental conditions. A hierarchical framework is proposed herein that combines SDMs, scenario analysis and cost analyses to improve invasion assessments at regional and local scales. We illustrate the framework with Acacia dealbata Link. (Silver‐wattle) in northern Portugal. The framework is general and applicable to any species.

We defined two types of monitoring networks focusing either on the regional‐scale management of an invasion, or management focus within and around protected areas. For each one of these two schemes, we designed a hierarchical framework of spatial prioritization using different information layers (e.g. SDMs, habitat connectivity, protected areas). We compared the performance of each monitoring scheme against 100 randomly generated models.

In our case study, we found that protected areas will be increasingly exposed to invasion by A. dealbata due to climate change. Moreover, connectivity between suitable areas for A. dealbata is predicted to increase. Monitoring networks that we identify were more effective in detecting new invasions and less costly to management than randomly generated models. The most cost‐efficient monitoring schemes require 18% less effort than the average networks across all of the 100 tested options.

Synthesis and applications. The proposed framework achieves cost‐effective monitoring networks, enabling the interactive exploration of different solutions and the combination of quantitative information on network performance with orientations that are rarely incorporated in a decision support system. The framework brings invasion monitoring closer to European legislation and management needs while ensuring adaptability under rapid climate and environmental change.
Metabarcoding and mitochondrial metagenomics of endogean arthropods to unveil the mesofauna of the soil
Authors: Arribas Paula , Andújar Carmelo , Hopkins Kevin , Shepherd Matthew , Vogler Alfried P. 
Published: March 2016

Summary

Biological communities inhabiting the soil are among the most diversified, complex and yet most poorly studied terrestrial ecosystems. The greatest knowledge gaps apply to the arthropod mesofauna (0·1–2 mm body size) because conventional morphological and molecular approaches are in many cases insufficient for the characterisation of these complex communities. The development of high‐throughput sequencing (HTS) methodologies is required to solve current impediments and to further advance our understanding of below‐ground biodiversity.

We propose a flotation–Berlese–flotation (FBF) protocol for sampling and specimen processing to obtain ‘clean’ DNA extractions of arthropod mesofauna from the soil. In addition, we developed and tested HTS protocols for the characterisation of arthropod communities from these bulk DNA extractions using cox1 metabarcoding and shotgun metagenomic sequencing on the MiSeq Illumina platform.

The FBF protocol provided DNA of soil arthropods from sufficiently large volumes of soil and free from contaminating bacteria and inhibitors. Metabarcoding and metagenomic sequencing on two deep soil samples from Iberian grasslands revealed >100 species of Acari and Collembola from 28 families. Genome assembly straight from shotgun sequencing of bulk specimens produced partial and full mitogenomes for 54 species with average length of >6000 bp. Metabarcoding and metagenomic sequencing resulted in closely congruent OTUs, but species numbers were highest with metabarcoding, while ∼73% of species were confirmed by matching shotgun sequence reads and ∼48% by contig assembly from those shotgun reads.

In combination, the FBF protocol together with the PCR‐based and shotgun sequencing pipelines addressed most of the challenges of studying soil arthropod mesofauna on the MiSeq Illumina platform. They are powerful, cost‐efficient tools for characterising soil diversity in a phylogenetic and community ecology context. These methodological developments of HTS approaches for the study of mesofauna will accelerate ecological and evolutionary studies, biomonitoring of soil arthropods, and progress in both theoretical and applied soil science.
Validating the use of unique trait combinations for measuring multivariate functional richness
Authors: Keyel Alexander C. , Wiegand Kerstin 
Published: March 2016

Summary

Quantifying functional trait diversity has provided important new insights for understanding ecosystem processes and functioning. Functional diversity is often partitioned into three components richness, evenness and divergence. Currently, a convex hull is used as a measure of multivariate richness, but this approach has some serious limitations.

Consequently, we propose using the number of unique trait combinations (UTCs) as an approach to measure the filled trait space (the hypervolume containing all possible trait combinations) and propose a new index, sUTC, as the amount of filled trait space divided by the trait space range. Like convex hull approaches, UTC can be partitioned into alpha and beta components when used across sites, and the beta component can be further partitioned into turnover and nestedness components. Unlike convex hull approaches, UTC can be used more intuitively with existing diversity measures as it can be used in conjunction with abundance information. We present the concepts these indices are based on and give examples of their use. The new index, sUTC, is compared to the existing indices on the basis of criteria specified in the literature and one novel criterion. We test and evaluate the approach using simulated data and field data.

We found that the UTC approach provided a more accurate assessment of functional richness than did the existing indices.

The UTC approach is a multivariate approach to measuring functional richness that can accommodate continuous and categorical traits and can account for holes in the trait space.
Knowledge and beliefs about nutrition and physical activity during pregnancy in women from South Auckland region, New Zealand
Authors: Okesene‐Gafa Karaponi , Chelimo Carol , Chua Shireen , Henning Marcus , McCowan Lesley 
Published: March 2016

BackgroundApproximately 60% of women in South Auckland, a culturally diverse region in New Zealand, become pregnant with a high body mass index. However, little is known about these women's knowledge of nutrition and physical activity during pregnancy.AimsTo assess knowledge of nutrition and physical activity during pregnancy, factors influencing eating habits and the willingness to participate in a nutritional intervention.Materials and MethodsA total of 422 women completed the survey in late pregnancy between September and December 2013. Multivariable logistic regression investigated factors associated with infrequent healthy eating, adjusting for ethnicity and gestation at questionnaire completion.ResultsEthnicity of participants was Māori (24.2%), Pacific (40.5%), Asian (12.8%) and European/Others (21.8%). Most (95.0%) reported receiving information about healthy eating while pregnant and 61% reported eating healthy frequently or very frequently. Forty‐four point three per cent reported eating more in pregnancy; the commonest reasons were cravings and ‘eating for two’. The adjusted odd ratios (aORs) indicated that the self‐reported factors associated with infrequent healthy eating in this sample were Māori (aOR 17.66; 95% CI 8.49–36.77) and Pacific ethnicity (aOR 14.54; 95% CI 7.32–28.88); parity ≥3 (aOR 2.09; 95%CI 1.26–3.48); obesity (aOR 2.84; 95% CI 1.35–5.97); unplanned pregnancy (aOR 1.95; 95%CI 1.18–3.22); and eating takeaways ≥3 times/week (aOR 4.46; 95%CI 1.88–10.56). Of women sampled, 83.4% would likely/very likely participate in a nutritional intervention.ConclusionSelf‐reported factors associated with infrequent healthy eating in pregnancy were identified in this sample. Our findings will assist development of a nutritional intervention for pregnant women in South Auckland.
Using different growth references to measure thinness and overweight among Swedish primary school children showed considerable variations
Authors: Nilsen Bente B. , Yngve Agneta , Sjöberg Agneta , Moraeus Lotta , Lissner Lauren , Werner Bo 
Published: March 2016

AbstractAimThe study compared how four different growth references determined the prevalence of thinness and overweight, based on height and weight measurements from a nationally representative sample of Swedish children from seven to nine years of age.MethodsThe height and weight measurements of 4518 Swedish schoolchildren aged seven to nine years were carried out in 2008 using a standardised protocol. The prevalence of different degrees of thinness and overweight was calculated using international growth references from the World Health Organization, the International Obesity Task Force and two Swedish growth references from Werner and Karlberg.ResultsDepending on which growth reference we used, the prevalence of different degrees of thinness varied from 7.5% to 16.9% for the boys and 6.9% to 13.7% for the girls, while the prevalence of overweight, including obesity and severe obesity, varied from 16.5% to 25.7% for the boys and 18.2 to 25.2% for the girls. There were also significant gender differences depending on the growth reference we used.ConclusionUsing four different growth references, two international and two Swedish, produced wide variations in the prevalence of thinness and overweight, together with significant gender differences. In the absence of a global definition, we need both national and international growth references.
Effects of temperature and temperature‐humidity index on the reproductive performance of sows during summer months under a temperate climate
Authors: Wegner Kerstin , Lambertz Christian , Das Gürbüz , Reiner Gerald , Gauly Matthias 
Published: March 2016

AbstractHeat stress is known to influence sow reproduction, but it is unknown to which extent under temperate climates. Therefore, the impact of temperature and temperature‐humidity index (THI) on the reproductive performance of sows during summer months from 2009 to 2011 were studied. Reproductive parameters of 22 264 inseminations and 21 610 resulting farrowings of 22 German commercial farms were analyzed. Climatic records were available from the nearest weather station. Effects of temperature and THI at different periods of the reproductive cycle were estimated from May to September where temperatures were expected to influence climatic conditions indoors. High temperatures and THI values 5 days pre‐ and 14 days post‐breeding reduced litter size by 0.01 to 0.03 piglets (P < 0.05). Prior to farrowing, the number of liveborn piglets was reduced (P < 0.05) and of stillborns increased with rising climatic variables (P < 0.001). On the day of farrowing, reduced numbers of weaned piglets were observed when temperature and THI values were elevated (P < 0.05), but pre‐weaning mortality was not influenced (P > 0.05). In conclusion, even under temperate conditions adverse effects of climatic variables on the reproductive performance of sows are present. Thereby, the number of liveborn piglets can be considered as the most sensitive parameter to heat stress. Considering the impact of climate change and predicted heat waves, strategies to mitigate the impact of heat stress are necessary.
Influence of transport conditions and pre‐slaughter water shower spray during summer on protein characteristics and water distribution of broiler breast meat
Authors: Xing Tong , Li Yun han. , Li Ming , Jiang Nan nan. , Xu Xing lian. , Zhou Guang hong. 
Published: March 2016

AbstractThis study investigated the effects of pre‐slaughter transport during summer and subsequent water shower spray on broiler meat quality and protein characteristics. Arbor Acres broiler chickens (n = 126, 42 days old, mixed sex, 2.5‐3 kg) were randomly categorized into three treatments: (i) control group without transport (C); (ii) 30 min transport (T); and (iii) 30 min transport followed by 10 min water shower spray and 20 min lairage (T/W). Each treatment consisted of six replicates with seven birds each. Ambient temperature was 32‐35°C during transportation. Results indicated that transport during high ambient temperature denatured myosin and sarcoplasmic proteins, led to decreased protein solubility and resulted in glycogen phosphorylase precipitated to the myofibrillar fraction. Furthermore, meat quality in the transport group showed a pale, soft and exudative (PSE)‐like syndrome. Water shower spray during lairage after transport reduced the degree of protein denaturation and lessened the deterioration of meat quality.
Social and attention‐to‐detail subclusters of autistic traits differentially predict looking at eyes and face identity recognition ability
Authors: Davis Joshua , McKone Elinor , Zirnsak Marc , Moore Tirin , O'Kearney Richard , Apthorp Deborah , Palermo Romina 
Published: March 2016

This study distinguished between different subclusters of autistic traits in the general population and examined the relationships between these subclusters, looking at the eyes of faces, and the ability to recognize facial identity. Using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) measure in a university‐recruited sample, we separate the social aspects of autistic traits (i.e., those related to communication and social interaction; AQ‐Social) from the non‐social aspects, particularly attention‐to‐detail (AQ‐Attention). We provide the first evidence that these social and non‐social aspects are associated differentially with looking at eyes: While AQ‐Social showed the commonly assumed tendency towards reduced looking at eyes, AQ‐Attention was associated with increased looking at eyes. We also report that higher attention‐to‐detail (AQ‐Attention) was then indirectly related to improved face recognition, mediated by increased number of fixations to the eyes during face learning. Higher levels of socially relevant autistic traits (AQ‐Social) trended in the opposite direction towards being related to poorer face recognition (significantly so in females on the Cambridge Face Memory Test). There was no evidence of any mediated relationship between AQ‐Social and face recognition via reduced looking at the eyes. These different effects of AQ‐Attention and AQ‐Social suggest face‐processing studies in Autism Spectrum Disorder might similarly benefit from considering symptom subclusters. Additionally, concerning mechanisms of face recognition, our results support the view that more looking at eyes predicts better face memory.
Preventing childhood obesity in early care and education settings: lessons from two intervention studies
Authors: Benjamin Neelon S. E. , Østbye T. , Hales D. , Vaughn A. , Ward D. S. 
Published: March 2016

SummaryBackgroundObesity prevention in young children is a public health priority. In the USA, nearly 10% of children less than 5 years of age are obese, and most attend some form of out‐of‐home child care. While a number of interventions have been conducted in early care and education settings, few have targeted the youngest children in care or the less formal types of child care like family child care homes. Additionally, only two previous studies provided recommendations to help inform future interventions.MethodsThis paper presents lessons learned from two distinct intervention studies in early care and education settings to help guide researchers and public health professionals interested in implementing and evaluating similar interventions. We highlight two studies: one targeting children ages 4 to 24 months in child care centres and the other intervening in children 18 months to 4 years in family child care homes. We include lessons from our pilot studies and the ongoing larger trials.ResultsTo date, our experiences suggest that an intervention should have a firm basis in behaviour change theory; an advisory group should help evaluate intervention materials and plan for delivery; and realistic recruitment goals should recognize economic challenges of the business of child care. A flexible data collection approach and realistic sample size calculations are needed because of high rates of child (and sometimes facility) turnover. An intervention that is relatively easy to implement is more likely to appeal to a wide variety of early care and education providers.ConclusionsInterventions to prevent obesity in early care and education have the potential to reach large numbers of children. It is important to consider the unique features and similarities of centres and family child care homes and take advantage of lessons learned from current studies in order to develop effective, evidence‐based interventions.
Osteogenic potential of rhBMP9 combined with a bovine‐derived natural bone mineral scaffold compared to rhBMP2
Authors: Fujioka‐Kobayashi Masako , Sawada Kosaku , Kobayashi Eizaburo , Schaller Benoit , Zhang Yufeng , Miron Richard J. 
Published: March 2016

AbstractObjectivesCombination therapies of growth factors and scaffolds for bone tissue engineering are becoming routine for clinical use. BMP9 has previously been characterized as one of the most osteogenic inducers among the BMP superfamily; however, up until recently, BMP9 has only been available through adenovirus transfection experiments (gene therapy). While recombinant human (rh)BMP2 is regarded as the gold standard for bone regeneration with recombinant growth factors, recently the successful development of rhBMP9 brings intriguing new possibilities for future clinical use. The purpose of this pioneering study was to investigate the effects of rhBMP9 in comparison with rhBMP2 on an in vitro cell behavior of bone‐forming osteoblasts when combined with a bone grafting material.Material and methodsUndifferentiated mouse ST2 stromal bone marrow cells were seeded onto bovine‐derived natural bone mineral (NBM) particles treated with (i) control, (ii) rhBMP2 (10 ng/ml), (iii) rhBMP2 (100 ng/ml), (iv) rhBMP9 (10 ng/ml) and (v) rhBMP9 (100 ng/ml). The effects of rhBMPs were compared for cell adhesion at 8 h, cell proliferation at 1, 3 and 5 days and osteoblast differentiation as assessed by real‐time PCR at 3 and 14 days for genes encoding Runx2, collagen1alpha2 (COL1a2), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OCN). Furthermore, ALP staining and alizarin red staining were used to investigate localization of osteoblast differentiation marker and mineralization on NBM.ResultsAlthough neither rhBMP2 nor rhBMP9 influenced cell attachment to NBM particles, both were able to stimulate cell proliferation at 3 days. Furthermore, all concentrations of rhBMPs were able to significantly induce mRNA levels of Runx2, COL1a2 and OCN at 3 days. Interestingly, only rhBMP9 was able to significantly upregulate mRNA levels of ALP up to eightfold, and ALP staining up to 25‐fold, when compared to rhBMP2. In addition, only rhBMP9 (100 ng/ml) significantly increased alizarin red staining when compared to control and rhBMP2 (10 ng/ml) samples.ConclusionThese results demonstrate that both rhBMP2 and rhBMP9 have osteopromotive properties on osteoblast differentiation. It was found that rhBMP9 additionally stimulated the osteopromotive potential of osteoblasts when compared to rhBMP2 by demonstrating higher levels of ALP expression and alizarin red staining. Further animal studies comparing both recombinant proteins are necessary to further characterize the osteoinductive potential of BMP9.
Pre‐caruncular approach to the medial orbit and landmarks for anterior ethmoidal artery ligation: a cadaveric study
Authors: Cornelis M.M.K. , Lubbe D.E. 
Published: March 2016

ObjectiveIn epistaxis and skull base surgery, the anterior ethmoidal artery sometimes needs to be ligated. We describe a novel, quick and scar‐free surgical technique to ligate this artery with salient landmarks allowing rapid identification.Patients and methodsTwenty medial orbital walls from 10 randomly selected fresh‐frozen, non‐formalinised cadaver heads were examined. Dissection was performed by a pre‐caruncular external approach to expose the AEA in all cases.ResultsThe Horner's muscle and nasion, two salient landmarks, have been identified for use during the pre‐caruncular approach.Discussion/ConclusionThe pre‐caruncular approach is a novel combined open and endoscopic surgical approach to the anterior ethmoidal artery. It is a simple, quick and scar‐free technique. The identification of the artery is easy when using the two anatomic landmarks we describe in our study, that is Horner's muscle and the nasion.