bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Classification of maize inbred lines into heterotic groups based on yield and yield attributing traits
Authors: Bhatla Anshika , Angidi Srushtideep , Thomas Noel , Madankar Kartik , Shahi J. P. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThis study investigated the combining ability, heterosis and heterotic grouping of maize (Zea mays L.) inbred lines to enhance hybrid performance and productivity. Twenty-four hybrids were developed by crossing eight inbred lines with three testers, and their performance was evaluated for two years at Banaras Hindu University's agricultural research farm. Data on yield and yield-attributing traits were collected from selectively centred competitive plants in each row, avoiding border plants to reduce errors. Biometrical techniques, cluster analysis, and statistical tools were employed to measure general combining ability (GCA), specific combining ability (SCA), and standard heterosis, providing insights into hybrid performance. Analysis of variance revealed significant mean square values for GCA and SCA across most traits studied. Various methods were utilized, including SCA effects, HGCAMT (Heterosis Grouping by Combining Ability of Multiple Traits), and HSGCA (Heterotic Grouping based on Specific and General Combining Ability). The study identified HUZM-242 × CML-286 and HUZM-53 × CML-286 as crosses displaying higher grain yield compared to the check line DKC 7074 and exhibiting positive heterosis. The findings offer valuable guidance for maize breeding programmes by accurately identifying heterotic groups, enabling breeders to select inbred lines more likely to produce high-performing hybrids. This targeted selection reduces the number of necessary cross-breeding trials, saving time and resources. Additionally, hybrids derived from crosses between lines from different heterotic groups exhibit superior performance due to higher heterosis. These conclusions support advancements in maize breeding strategies, ultimately contributing to agricultural sustainability through increased productivity, resource efficiency, and economic benefits for farmers.
Traffic Bottlenecks: Predicting Atmospheric Blocking With a Diminishing Flow Capacity
Authors: Yan Xingjian , Wang Lei , Gerber Edwin P. , Castañeda Valentina , Ho Ka Ying 
Published: October 2024

AbstractAtmospheric blocking is characterized by persistent anticyclones that “block” the midlatitude jet stream, causing temperature and precipitation extremes. The traffic jam theory posits that blocking events occur when the Local Wave Activity flux, a measure of storm activity, exceeds the carrying capacity of the jet stream, leading to a pile up. The theory's efficacy for prediction is tested with atmospheric reanalysis by defining “exceedance events”, the time and location where wave activity first exceeds flow capacity. The theory captures the Northern Hemisphere winter blocking climatology, with strong spatial correlation between exceedance and blocking events. Both events are favored not only by low carrying capacity (narrow roads), but also a downstream reduction in capacity (lane closures causing a bottleneck). The theory fails, however, to accurately predict blocking events in time. Exceedance events are not a useful predictor of an imminent block, suggesting that confounding factors explain their shared climatological structure.
Waves and Instabilities in Saturn's Magnetosheath: 1 Mirror Mode Waves and Their Impact on Magnetopause Reconnection
Authors: Cheng I. , Achilleos N. , Blanco‐Cano X. , Bertucci C. , Sergis N. , Paranicas C. , Guio P. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractA comprehensive catalog of 1,589 Saturn magnetosheath traversals by Cassini between 2004 and 2012 was used to perform a statistical study of mirror mode (MM) waves and assess their role in influencing magnetic reconnection at the magnetopause (MP). MM waves have been observed in many planetary magnetospheres and magnetosheaths, comets and the solar wind. Understanding the conditions under which they grow and dominate can reveal their role in influencing plasma dynamics. Using a thresholding method on both magnetic field and plasma data, MM wave candidates can be identified. The magnetic field characteristics and occurrence distributions of these waves against different locations and conditions were found. MM waves were found from 4 to 19 hr local time (partly due to data coverage), and distances of 0–12 from the magnetopause (MP). The occurrence of MM dips was more frequent near the MP and magnetosheath flanks, analogous to the Jovian system. MM dips exhibited a minimum field strength saturation 0.5 nT, with the largest dip inferred to be in mirror‐stable plasma. Notably, larger amplitude MM dips were typically found nearer the MP boundary which increases across the boundary thus increasing the magnetic shear necessary for the onset of MP reconnection. Thus, MM waves may be important in plasma dynamics near Saturn's magnetopause.
The Impact of the 8–10 March 2012 Geomagnetic Storm on Inner Zone Protons as Measured by Van Allen Probes
Authors: Li Zhao , Engel Miles , Hudson Mary , Kress Brian , Patel Maulik , Selesnick Richard 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThe Relativistic Electron Proton Telescope (REPT) instrument on the Van Allen Probes observed a double‐peaked inner zone proton population throughout the 7 year lifetime of the mission. M. Hudson et al. (2023) showed that a strong SEP event accompanied by a CME‐shock in early March 2012 provided the Solar Energetic Proton (SEP) source for the higher L trapped proton population, which then diffused radially inward to be observed by REPT at . The study followed trajectories of SEP protons launched isotropically from a sphere at 7 Re for 2.5 hr in fields calculated by the LFM‐RCM global MHD model, which includes electric fields needed to model the transport and trapping of the protons by the shock, and then a radial diffusion simulation was run for 2 years using the result from the test‐particle simulation as the initial condition. The simulation result was compared with REPT measurement in November 2013 and showed reasonable agreement. However, the simulation overestimated the Phase Space Density by a factor of four due to lack of field line curvature scattering during the storm in the model. In this study, a test‐particle simulation is performed for 2 days following the injection and trapping of protons in March 2012 using TS05 fields to simulate the field line curvature scattering of the trapped SEP due to the buildup of the ring current during the geomagnetic storm. The resulting sample distribution was then weighted using the flux at the end of the two‐hour MHD‐test particle simulation. A radial diffusion simulation is then run using the initial profile that included the loss effect, with improved comparison with REPT measurements after 2 years.
Omnidirectional Energetic Electron Fluxes From 150 to 20,000 km: An ELFIN‐Based Model
Authors: Saint‐Girons Emile , Zhang Xiao‐Jia , Mourenas Didier , Artemyev Anton V. , Angelopoulos Vassilis 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThe strong variations of energetic electron fluxes in the Earth's inner magnetosphere are notoriously hard to forecast. Developing accurate empirical models of electron fluxes from low to high altitudes at all latitudes is therefore useful to improve our understanding of flux variations and to assess radiation hazards for spacecraft systems. In the present work, energy‐ and pitch‐angle‐resolved precipitating, trapped, and backscattered electron fluxes measured at low altitude by Electron Loss and Fields Investigation (ELFIN) CubeSats are used to infer omnidirectional fluxes at altitudes below and above the spacecraft, from 150 to 20,000 km, making use of adiabatic transport theory and quasi‐linear diffusion theory. The inferred fluxes are fitted as a function of selected parameters using a stepwise multivariate optimization procedure, providing an analytical model of omnidirectional electron flux along each geomagnetic field line, based on measurements from only one spacecraft in low Earth orbit. The modeled electron fluxes are provided as a function of ‐shell, altitude, energy, and two different indices of past substorm activity, computed over the preceding 4 hr or 3 days, potentially allowing to disentangle impulsive processes (such as rapid injections) from cumulative processes (such as inward radial diffusion and wave‐driven energization). The model is validated through comparisons with equatorial measurements from the Van Allen Probes, demonstrating the broad applicability of the present method. The model indicates that both impulsive and time‐integrated substorm activity partly control electron fluxes in the outer radiation belt and in the plasma sheet.
The Impact of Drought on Terrestrial Carbon in the West African Sahel: Implications for Natural Climate Solutions
Authors: Rigatti Emma , McDermid Sonali S. , Cook Benjamin I. , De Kauwe Martin G. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractTerrestrial ecosystems store more than twice the carbon of the atmosphere, and are critical to climate change mitigation efforts. This has led to a proliferation of land‐based carbon sequestration efforts, such as re/afforestation associated with the Great Green Wall in the West African Sahel (WAS GGW). However, we currently lack comprehensive assessments of the long‐term viability of these ecosystems' carbon storage in the context of increasingly severe climate extremes. The WAS is particularly prone to recurrent and disruptive extremes, exemplified by the persistent and severe late‐20th century drought. We assessed the response and recovery of WAS GGW carbon stocks and fluxes to this late‐20th century drought, and the subsequent rainfall recovery, by leveraging a suite of terrestrial ecosystem models. While multi‐model mean carbon fluxes (e.g., gross primary production, respiration) partly recovered to pre‐drought levels, modeled total (above and below ground) ecosystem carbon stock falls to as much as two standard deviations below pre‐drought levels and does not recover even ∼20 years after the maximum drought anomaly. Furthermore, to the extent that the modeled regional carbon stock recovers, it is nearly entirely driven by atmospheric CO2 trends rather than the precipitation recovery. Uncertainties in regional ecosystem carbon simulation are high, as the models' carbon responses to drought displayed a nearly 10‐standard deviation spread. Nevertheless, the multi‐model average response highlights the strong and persistent impact of drought on terrestrial carbon storage, and the potential risks of relying on terrestrial ecosystems as a “natural climate solution” for climate change mitigation.
Improving the Skill of Subseasonal to Seasonal (S2S) Wind Speed Forecasts Over India Using Statistical and Machine Learning Methods
Authors: Das Aheli , Reddy Dondeti Pranay , Baidya Roy Somnath 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThis study demonstrates a framework to improve the skill of raw 10 m wind speed forecasts from numerical models at the subseasonal to seasonal (S2S) time scales. Monthly mean 10 m wind speeds from the ECMWF‐SEAS5 are calibrated using JRA‐55 as reference by employing three statistical methods, bias‐adjustment, quantile‐mapping, and ratio of predictable components (RPC), and four decision tree‐based ML methods, random forest (RF) and light gradient boosting machine (LGBM), RF and LGBM with past observations that is, RF_lags and LGBM_lags respectively, for all 12 months of the year at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 months lead time over the homogenous climate zones of India. The quality and skill of raw and calibrated forecasts are evaluated using root mean squared error (RMSE), ratio of standard deviation, and continuous ranked probability skill score (CRPSS). The raw forecasts have large RMSE values, often >1 m/s and mostly do not have any skill. The calibrated forecasts have an RMSE of ∼0.5 m/s, CRPSS ∼0.4, and RMSE ∼0.3 m/s and CRPSS ∼0.7 from statistical and ML‐based methods respectively. The ML‐based methods therefore produce better S2S wind speed forecasts than the statistical methods. This is a timely study with broad impacts especially for the wind energy industry that requires skillful S2S forecasts for financial planning and decision‐making.
Millennial‐Scale Climate Variability Potentially Shaped the Early Interglacial Optimum in Southern Europe
Authors: Desprat Stéphanie , Guillem Gauthier , Sánchez Goñi Maria Fernanda , Rodrigues Teresa , Yin Qiuzhen , Grimalt Joan O. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThe seasonal and latitudinal distribution of insolation is considered the main factor controlling the magnitude and timing of interglacial periods. However, despite small differences in insolation forcing, vegetation and hydrology in southern Europe during past interglacials are variable and the gradual change in insolation cannot explain the observed short‐lived forest optimum. Here we focus on vegetation and hydroclimatic changes at orbital‐ and suborbital‐scales in southwestern Europe during two past warm interglacial periods with reduced ice‐sheets, namely Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 9e and 5e. We provide new pollen and sea surface temperatures records for MIS 9e from IODP Site U1385. This pollen record shows a forest expansion in southern Iberia over a 14 ky interval, bracketed by the millennial‐scale cooling events of Termination IV and MIS 9d. Between 334.5 and 332.5 ka, forest expansion reached a maximum, suggesting increased winter moisture during early MIS 9e. Model‐data comparison for MIS 9e and 5e shows that insolation is the main driver of the orbital‐scale vegetation and precipitation changes in Iberia, atmospheric CO2 forcing playing a secondary role. The high‐frequency component of the MIS 9e and 5e forest timeseries highlights the early interglacial forest and precipitation maxima as prominent suborbital events lasting ∼2 ky. We propose that the primarily insolation‐driven forest and precipitation optima were fostered by the non‐equilibrium conditions generated by the millennial‐scale deglacial variability during the early interglacials. Additionally, the early end of these optima may have been favored by a cooling and drying event that is part of the persistent intra‐interglacial variability.
Lidar Network for Temperature and Wind Measurements in the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere Region
Authors: Yang Y. , Li F. , Cheng X. , Yang G. , Lyu D. , Lin X. , Liu L. , Fang X. , Zheng J. , Du L. , Wang W. , Ren L. , Wang J. , Liang J. , Ji K. , Xu L. , Chen Z. , Ji K. , Zheng H. , Wang X. , Wang Y. , Jiao J. , Wang X. , Xue X. , Xia Y. , Li Y. , Lin Z. , Chen L. , Chen Z. , Xu J. , Li G. , Hu L. , Gong S. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractA sodium lidar (light detection and range) network for the Earth's mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) temperature, wind and sodium density measurements is designed and constructed in the second phase of the Chinese Meridional Project. Five narrowband sodium lidar systems are deployed across various regions in China, designed and developed based on similar principles and structures. They adhere to uniform data processing standards and operate under the same observational protocols. This allows them to form a network of lidar systems capable of detecting temperature and wind fields in the MLT. The preliminary observation results of the lidar near Tibetan plateau is demonstrated in this paper. This lidar network offers horizontal perspectives on large scale that a single‐station lidar system can't provide. Its future observations are expected to advance the understanding of atmospheric waves by studying wave propagation, chemical‐dynamical coupling processes and the horizonal structure of in the MLT region.
Sociodemographic and dietary predictors of maternal and placental mycoestrogen concentrations in a US pregnancy cohort
Authors: Kinkade Carolyn W. , Brinker Anita , Buckley Brian , Waysack Olivia , Fernandez I. Diana , Kautz Amber , Meng Ying , Shi Huishan , Brunner Jessica , Ohman-Strickland Pamela , Groth Susan W. , O’Connor Thomas G. , Aleksunes Lauren M. , Barrett Emily S. , Rivera-Núñez Zorimar 
Published: October 2024

Abstract
Background
Zearalenone (ZEN) is a mycotoxin contaminating grains and processed foods. ZEN alters nuclear estrogen receptor α/β signaling earning its designation as a mycoestrogen. Experimental evidence demonstrates that mycoestrogen exposure during pregnancy is associated with altered maternal sex steroid hormones, changes in placental size, and decreases in fetal weight and length. While mycoestrogens have been detected in human biospecimens worldwide, exposure assessment of ZEN in US populations, particularly during pregnancy, is lacking.

Objective
To characterize urinary and placental concentrations of ZEN and its metabolites in healthy US pregnant people and examine demographic, perinatal, and dietary predictors of exposure.

Methods
Urine samples were collected in each trimester from pregnant participants in the UPSIDE study and placenta samples were collected at delivery (Rochester, NY, n = 317). We used high performance liquid chromatography and high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry to measure total urinary (ng/ml) and placental mycoestrogens (ng/g). Using linear regression and linear mixed effect models, we examined associations between mycoestrogen concentrations and demographic, perinatal, and dietary factors (Healthy Eating Index [HEI], ultra-processed food [UPF] consumption).

Results
Mycoestrogens were detected in 97% of urines (median 0.323 ng/ml) and 84% of placentas (median 0.012 ng/g). Stability of urinary mycoestrogens across pregnancy was low (ICC: 0.16–0.22) and did not correlate with placental levels. In adjusted models, parity (multiparous) and pre-pregnancy BMI (higher) predicted higher urinary concentrations. Birth season (fall) corresponded with higher placental mycoestrogens. Dietary analyses indicated that higher HEI (healthier diets) predicted lower exposure (e.g., Σmycoestrogens %∆ −2.03; 95%CI −3.23, −0.81) and higher percent calories from UPF predicted higher exposure (e.g., Σmycoestrogens %∆ 1.26; 95%CI 0.29, 2.24).

Impact

The mycotoxin, zearalenone (ZEN), has been linked to adverse health and reproductive impacts in animal models and livestock. Despite evidence of widespread human exposure, relatively little is known about predictors of exposure. In a pregnant population, we observed that maternal ZEN concentrations varied by maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and parity. Consumption of ultra-processed foods, added sugars, and refined grains were linked to higher ZEN concentrations while healthier diets were associated with lower levels. Our research suggests disparities in exposure that are likely due to diet. Further research is needed to understand the impacts of ZEN on maternal and offspring health.
Enabling data linkages for rare diseases in a resilient environment with the SERDIF framework
Authors: Navarro-Gallinad Albert , Orlandi Fabrizio , Scott Jennifer , Havyarimana Enock , Basu Neil , Little Mark A. , O’Sullivan Declan 
Published: October 2024

AbstractEnvironmental factors amplified by climate change contribute significantly to the global burden of disease, disproportionately impacting vulnerable populations, such as individuals with rare diseases. Researchers require innovative, dynamic data linkage methods to enable the development of risk prediction models, particularly for diseases like vasculitis with unknown aetiology but potential environmental triggers. In response, we present the Semantic Environmental and Rare Disease Data Integration Framework (SERDIF). SERDIF was evaluated with researchers studying climate-related health hazards of vasculitis disease activity across European countries (NP1 = 10, NP2 = 17, NP3 = 23). Usability metrics consistently improved, indicating SERDIF’s effectiveness in linking complex environmental and health datasets. Furthermore, SERDIF-enabled epidemiologists to study environmental factors in a pregnancy cohort in Lombardy, showcasing its versatility beyond rare diseases. This framework offers for the first time a user-friendly, FAIR-compliant design for environment-health data linkage with export capabilities enabling data analysis to mitigate health risks posed by climate change.
Switchable protection and exposure of a sensitive squaraine dye within a redox active rotaxane
Authors: Wasternack Janos , Schröder Hendrik V. , Witte J. Felix , Ilisson Mihkel , Hupatz Henrik , Hille Julian F. , Gaedke Marius , Valkonen Arto M. , Sobottka Sebastian , Krappe Alexander , Schubert Mario , Paulus Beate , Rissanen Kari , Sarkar Biprajit , Eigler Siegfried , Resch-Genger Ute , Schalley Christoph A. 
Published: October 2024

AbstractIn nature, molecular environments in proteins can sterically protect and stabilize reactive species such as organic radicals through non-covalent interactions. Here, we report a near-infrared fluorescent rotaxane in which the stabilization of a chemically labile squaraine fluorophore by the coordination of a tetralactam macrocycle can be controlled chemically and electrochemically. The rotaxane can be switched between two co-conformations in which the wheel either stabilizes or exposes the fluorophore. Coordination by the wheel affects the squaraine’s stability across four redox states and renders the radical anion significantly more stable—by a factor of 6.7—than without protection by a mechanically bonded wheel. Furthermore, the fluorescence properties can be tuned by the redox reactions in a stepwise manner. Mechanically interlocked molecules provide an excellent scaffold to stabilize and selectively expose reactive species in a co-conformational switching process controlled by external stimuli.
Coupling nanoscopic tomography and micromagnetic modelling to assess the stability of geomagnetic recorders
Authors: Donardelli Bellon Ualisson , Williams Wyn , Trindade Ricardo Ivan Ferreira , Diaz Ana , Galante Douglas 
Published: October 2024

AbstractThe recording of planetary magnetic fields is often attributed to uniformly-magnetised nanoscopic iron oxides, called single-domain. Yet, the main magnetic constituents of rocks are more complex, non-uniformly magnetised grains in single or multi-vortex states. We know little about their behaviour due to limitations in defining their precise shape and internal magnetic structure. Here we combine non-destructive Ptychographic X-ray Computed Nano-tomography with micromagnetic modelling to explore the magnetic stability of remanence-bearing minerals. Applied to a microscopic rock sample, we identified hundreds of nanoscopic grains of magnetite/maghemite with diverse morphologies. Energy barrier calculations were performed for these irregularly shaped grains. For some grains, these morphological irregularities near the transition from single-domain to the single-vortex state allow for multiple domain states, some unstable and unable to record the field for significant periods. Additionally, some other grains exhibit temperature-dependent occupancy probabilities, potentially hampering experiments to recover the intensity of past magnetic fields.