bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A framework to apply trait‐based ecological restoration at large scales
Authors: Coutinho André G. , Carlucci Marcos B. , Cianciaruso Marcus V. 
Published: May 2023

Abstract

Upscaling trait‐based restoration to regional levels is necessary as we enter the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. For this, we need to select species that achieve functional targets considering the regional species pool.

Here, we present a framework to achieve multiple restoration targets using a regional species pool containing the species available on the market, species unavailable, and species that occur in reference ecosystems. The framework enables optimising functional diversity (FD), recovering FD and composition using reference ecosystems, reducing cost and increasing species diversity in restoration. Additionally, our framework allows the detection of functionally relevant species in the regional pool that are unavailable for restoration on the market. We illustrate our framework with a data set of Brazilian savanna tree communities.

It was not possible to optimise FD with the species available on the market. To achieve this target, it would be necessary to use unavailable species from the regional pool. However, with the species available on the market it was possible to obtain communities resistant to fire and to restore functional composition and diversity to levels similar to or greater than those observed in reference ecosystems.

Synthesis and applications. Our framework selects species to achieve multiple targets in large‐scale trait‐based restoration initiatives. The framework shows a range of solutions that can be achieved with the regional species pool. That allows the restoration practitioner to verify if functional parameters are truly optimised and which species should be added to the market or collected from the wild to achieve restoration targets. It also shows how different selected communities are from reference ecosystems, avoiding the unintentional creation of novel ecosystems.
Nexus between renewable energy consumption, economic growth, and CO2 emissions in Algeria: New evidence from the Fourier‐Bootstrap ARDL approach
Authors: Elbadri Marei , Bsikre Salah , Alamari Osama , Balcilar Mehmet 
Published: May 2023

AbstractGovernments often impose new energy strategies to support new CO2 emission‐reducing technologies without affecting economic growth. Hence, this study aims to re‐investigate the relationship between economic growth, renewable energy use, and CO2 emissions in Algeria from 1990 to 2018. Motivated by the mixed findings of the existing literature, which ignore the Fourier function and bootstrap test and apply the newly developed Fourier bootstrap autoregressive distributed lag model (FARDL). Our findings indicate that renewable energy use and growth have a long‐run relationship with CO2 emissions and do not accept the existence of the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis for CO2 emissions in Algeria. In the long term, the results show that renewable energy use has a negative and significant impact, and growth has a positive and statistically significant effect on CO2 emissions. In the short run, the findings indicate that renewable energy use reduces CO2 emissions, while both the growth and squared growth had positive and statistically insignificant impacts on CO2 emissions, confirming the lack of evidence supporting the EKC hypothesis. Moreover, the causality test indicates a one‐way causation from growth to renewable energy use, confirming the conservation hypothesis for Algeria and from growth to CO2 emissions. Interestingly, we found one‐way causality from CO2 emissions to renewable energy use, attributing this to the fact that renewable energy usage has yet to reach a point that it can significantly cause a CO2 emissions reduction. Based on the results, we recommend that policymakers design appropriate policies to decarbonize energy consumption, e.g., increasing fossil fuel costs and implementing a carbon tax. In contrast, Algeria should promote new CO2 emission‐reducing technologies without affecting economic growth, e.g., tax exemptions and reductions for enterprise owners in the renewable energy industry.
Production and characterization of nanofibrillated cellulose gels simultaneously exhibiting thermally stable green color and oil‐in‐water emulsion stabilizing capability from Centella asiatica
Authors: Thiabmak Chompunutch , Chiewchan Naphaporn , Devahastin Sakamon 
Published: May 2023

AbstractNanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) gels simultaneously exhibiting Pickering stabilizing capability and thermally stable green color were developed for use as food additive in thermally processed food emulsion requiring the expression of color. Chopped Centella asiatica plant was mixed with zinc amino acid chelate solution and subject to autoclaving at 130°C for 2 h to form zinc‐chlorophylls complex and to remove noncellulosic components. Autoclaved sample was high‐shear homogenized at 26,000 rpm for 15 min and microfluidized at either 80, 120, or 160 MPa for 5 passes. An increase in microfluidization pressure resulted in a decrease in NFC diameters; microfluidization at 160 MPa did not nevertheless yield any further reduction in the diameters when compared with that at 120 MPa. From energy consumption point of view, microfluidization at 120 MPa for 5 passes was then noted as optimal condition for preparation of NFC coloring gel; NFC with diameters of 8–42 nm and crystallinity index of 35% was obtained. Freshly prepared gel exhibited gel‐like behavior and dark green color. Heating at 121°C for 1 h did not affect diameters, viscoelasticity, and color of the gel. Addition of the gel at 0.9% or 1.2% (w/w) into soybean oil‐in‐water emulsion, in combination with high‐shear homogenization at 18,000 rpm for 5 min, resulted in adequate emulsion stability. The emulsion exhibited stable dark green color and no phase separation after heating at 121°C for 1 h and during storage for 8 weeks.Practical ApplicationsInformation presented here can serve as a guideline for further development of a multifunctional food ingredient exhibiting thermally stable green color and oil‐in‐water emulsion stabilizing capability. In other words, one simple ingredient can serve at the same time as both natural food colorant and emulsion stabilizer.
The risks of standing out to mate: Predation of Hylodes cardosoi by Bothrops jararaca
Authors: D'Bastiani Elvira , Oliveira Glauco , Campião Karla M. 
Published: May 2023

AbstractVocalization, visual and chemical signals are courtship behaviours of anurans that may expose them to the risk of predation. Here, we described a predation event in which a population of the torrent frog Hylodes cardosoi was in intense courtship behaviour and one individual was caught by a specimen of the pitviper Bothrops jararaca. The predation event was recorded in a region of Atlantic Forest, Paraná, Brazil. We hypothesized that the pitviper was ambush hunting and captured a female frog that was attracted by the vocalization of a nearby male. Predatory interactions are important ecological factors driving the evolution and population size of both prey and predator. This report increases the prey richness described for B. jararaca and also extends the known geographic distribution of H. cardosoi. Our observation contributes to knowledge of the natural history of the species involved.
Individual specialization is the highest in generalist populations from intermediary to high trophic positions in tropical freshwater fishes
Authors: Brazil‐Sousa Clarissa , Soares Bruno Eleres , Svanbäck Richard , Albrecht Míriam Pilz 
Published: May 2023

AbstractIndividual specialization (IS) refers to intrapopulation variation in resource use unrelated to ontogeny, sexual dimorphism, or discrete morphological variation. A broad niche increases individual specialization because individuals might segregate in niche space. If trophic position influences niche breadth, it would indirectly constrain the degree of individual specialization. Intermediate trophic levels, usually associated with omnivory, might display fewer constraints on their trophic niche, leading to high levels of individual specialization. We investigate the degree of individual specialization and its relationship to the trophic position in 121 fish populations belonging to 32 species from the upper Tocantins River, Central Brazil. We calculated IS using the index V based on the stomach contents of individuals, whereas values close to 1 indicate strong IS. IS ranged from 0 to 0.87 and greatly varied among species. We showed that niche breadth positively affects a population's individual specialization regardless of its trophic position. Populations occupying intermediate and high trophic positions displayed the highest degrees of individual specialization. Omnivory has no significant effect over individual specialization values. We argue that the intricate relationship among individual specialization, trophic position, and niche breadth relates to the great ecological opportunity and trophic plasticity in tropical fishes.
International Finance and Geopolitics
Authors: Eichengreen Barry 
Published: May 2023

ABSTRACTRecent events, notably financial sanctions imposed on Russia by the USA and its geopolitical allies together with mounting economic and political tensions between the USA and China, have highlighted the role of geopolitics in shaping global monetary and financial relations. What these developments imply for the future will turn on how US–China tensions play out. In what follows I consider two scenarios: the status‐quo scenario and the breakdown‐in‐relations scenario. The former would see ongoing but very gradual international reserve and financial diversification from the dollar to the renminbi. The latter see a bifurcation of the international financial system into two silos centered on the respective currencies, with highly disruptive implications for the global economy.
Loan packaging decisions for beginning African American and other socially disadvantaged farmers
Authors: Escalante Cesar L. , Gao Penghui , Secor William 
Published: May 2023

AbstractThis study presents evidence on the relative accommodation of credit requests made by minority start‐up entrepreneurs in the U.S. farm sector. Loan packaging terms (amount, interest rate, and maturity) prescribed by lending officers of the Farm Service Agency, the government's lending arm to the farm sector, are analyzed and compared across racial/ethnic and gender groups of borrowers. The intention is to discern whether prescribed loan terms are favorable and supportive of the new farms' business growth and survival goals and uncover any trends of preferential treatment for certain groups of borrowers. Econometric results did not uncover any significant deviations in the lenders' decisions for beginning African American and White farmers for all three components of the loan package. While most packaging term decisions were similar among borrowers of different racial/ethnic attributes, the only exceptional terms were significantly larger loan amounts for American Indians and higher interest rates for Hispanic Americans. Compared to farmers in the South, loan term decisions seem to align with regional concentrations of farm typologies, such as the prevalence of livestock operations in the Plains and Midwest that require longer loan repayment periods and larger crop farms in the West with higher loan amount approvals.
Out of the ordinary: Everyday life and the “carnival of Mussolini”
Authors: Heywood Paolo 
Published: May 2023

AbstractOrdinary life is in many ways the quintessential object of anthropological analysis. Yet little attention has been paid to contexts in which it is important to people themselves that they and their actions are seen to be ordinary and to the work that goes into making something or someone appear ordinary. An exploration of ordinary life in Predappio, Italy, birthplace and grave of Benito Mussolini and premier site of neofascist tourism, reveals just how much effort has to go into producing a scaled sense of ordinariness in this extraordinary place. In this way, ordinary life is exposed as the object, not the site, of such work. This suggests the need to reconsider our usage of ordinary life in order to attend to situations in which the category itself—not just its particular contents—has ethnographic relevance.
Combining sarcopenia and ASA status to inform emergency laparotomy outcomes: could it be that simple?
Authors: Ming Yan Joyce , Howley Peter , Holmes Merran , Gani Jon , Pockney Peter ,   the Hunter Emergency Laparotomy Collaborator Group
Published: May 2023

AbstractBackgroundRisk assessment for emergency laparotomy (EL) is important for guiding decision‐making and anticipating the level of perioperative care in acute clinical settings. While established tools such as the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program calculator (ACS‐NSQIP), the National Emergency Laparotomy Audit Risk Prediction Calculator (NELA) and the Portsmouth Physiological and Operative Severity Score for the enumeration of Mortality and Morbidity calculation (P‐POSSUM) are accurate predictors for mortality, there has been increasing recognition of the benefits from including measurements for frailty in a simple and quantifiable manner. Psoas muscle to 3rd lumbar vertebra area ratio (PM:L3) measured on CT scans was proven to have a significant inverse association with 30‐, 90‐ and 365‐day mortality in EL patients.MethodsA retrospective analysis was conducted of 500 patients admitted to four Australian hospitals who underwent EL during 2016–2017, and had contemporaneous abdomino‐pelvic CT scans. Radiological sarcopenia was measured as PM:L3 ratios. ASC‐NSQIP, NELA and P‐POSSUM were retrospectively calculated. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression modelling was used to assess these ratios and scores, as well as American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) classification separated into ASA I‐III and IV/V (simplified ASA), as potential predictors of 30‐, 90‐ and 365‐day mortality.ResultsPM:L3, simplified ASA, ACS‐NSQIP, NELA and P‐POSSUM were each statistically significant predictors of 30‐day, 90‐day and 365‐day mortality (P < 0.001). Logistic regression models of 30‐, 90‐ and 365‐day mortality combining PM:L3 (P = 0.001) and simplified ASA (P < 0.001) exhibited AUCs of 0.838 (0.780, 0.896), 0.805 (0.751, 0.860) and 0.775 (0.729, 0.822), respectively, which were comparable to that of ACS‐NSQIP and NELA.ConclusionCombining the semi‐physiological parameter ASA classification with PM:L3 provides a quick and simple alternative to the more complex established risk assessment scores and is superior to PM:L3 alone.
Low‐quality muscle mass rather than normal‐quality muscle mass determines fibrosis progression in biopsy‐proven NAFLD
Authors: Lee Yun Kyu , Koo Bo Kyung , Joo Sae Kyung , Lee Dong Hyeon , Jang Heejoon , Chai Jee Won , Lee Myoung Seok , Jang Si Won , So Young Ho , Park Jeong Hwan , Chang Mee Soo , Kim Won ,   Innovative Target Exploration of NAFLD (ITEN) Consortium
Published: May 2023

SummaryBackground and aimsSarcopaenia is associated with advanced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the impact of the muscle mass categorised by muscle quality on fibrosis progression remains unclear.MethodsA total of 292 patients with biopsy‐proven NAFLD who underwent serial vibration‐controlled transient elastography assessments at least 1 year from baseline were selected. The skeletal muscle area (SMA) was determined on abdominal computed tomography (CT) at the third lumbar vertebra level and categorised to normal‐attenuation muscle area (NAMA), low‐attenuation muscle area (LAMA) and intermuscular adipose tissue (IMAT) using a muscle quality map. These SMAs were normalised by the height squared to obtain the skeletal muscle index (SMI).ResultsAt baseline, as the histological fibrosis stage increased, SMINAMA decreased and SMILAMA increased (p for trend = 0.014 and p for trend <0.001, respectively), which was not significant after adjustment for age, sex and obesity. During a median follow‐up of 41 months, fibrosis progression was detected in 48 out of 292 patients, and higher SMILAMA quartiles independently increased the risk of fibrosis progression in a dose‐dependent manner (hazard ratio [HR] per quartile: 1.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04–1.91). The highest quartile of SMILAMA increased the risk of fibrosis progression by 3.25 times compared to the lowest quartile of SMILAMA (95% CI, 1.18–8.90). SMINAMA quartiles were not associated with the risk of fibrosis progression.ConclusionIncreased low‐quality muscle mass, but not decreased normal‐quality muscle mass, as assessed by a muscle quality map in CT, predicts fibrosis progression in patients with NAFLD.
Changes in piglet and litter characteristics across parities in two highly prolific sow hybrids in an outdoor organic herd
Authors: Kobek‐Kjeldager Cecilie , Larsen Mona Lillian Vestbjerg , Pedersen Lene Juul 
Published: May 2023

AbstractHigh piglet mortality constitutes a welfare challenge in organic pig production. Litter characteristics were investigated from parities 1–5 of two hyper‐prolific hybrids with different selection traits in an organic commercial herd (DanBred vs. Topigs Norsvin [TN70]). TN70 sows had more functional teats than DanBred sows, and their offspring had higher birth weights. Several interactions between hybrid and parity were found. The total born increased with higher parity and was more pronounced for DanBred sows. Litter weight at weaning was higher in parities 1–4 for TN70 compared with DanBred, and within DanBred parities 4 and 5 had higher litter weight at weaning than parity 1. The survival rate was higher for TN70 in parities 1 and 2 compared with DanBred, and for both hybrids, the survival rate was higher in parities 1 and 2 compared with parities 4 and 5. The number of weaned piglets was stable across parities 1–4 but lower in parity 5 for both hybrids. Thus, despite a lower number of total born piglets in TN70, TN70 sows weaned the same number of piglets as DanBred, with a lower mortality rate and a heavier litter at weaning.
The capacity of ante‐mortem inspection of pigs at the abattoir to predict post‐mortem findings and associated financial implications: A study at batch level
Authors: Teixeira Dayane Lemos , Salazar Laura C. , Boyle Laura A. 
Published: May 2023

AbstractThis study aimed to investigate the associations between severe ear, tail, and skin lesions, hernias, bursitis, and rectal prolapses and meat inspection finding in slaughter pigs, including carcass weight and financial implications associated with carcass condemnations at batch level. Data were collected from 13,296 pigs from 116 batches from a single abattoir. Spearman's correlation coefficients were calculated to analyze the degree of association between the prevalence of welfare issues and condemnation findings. The association between batch‐level results of carcass weight, batch size, and the prevalence of welfare issues was analyzed using generalized linear mixed models. The prevalence of tail lesions was significantly associated with both entire (r = 0.224; p = 0.0432) and partial (r = 0.276; p = 0.0120) carcass condemnation. Batches with pigs affected by more than one welfare issue were 9.9 kg lighter than those without welfare issues (p < 0.05), which was equivalent to a potential loss of €11.28 per pig. Our findings indicate that ante‐mortem inspection could be useful to predict post‐mortem findings at batch level and that welfare issues in pigs represent a financial loss to producers, as they are paid on a per kg basis and have tight margins.
Compound‐42 alleviates acute kidney injury by targeting RIPK3‐mediated necroptosis
Authors: He Xiao‐yan , Wang Fang , Suo Xiao‐guo , Gu Ming‐zhen , Wang Jia‐nan , Xu Chuan‐hui , Dong Yu‐hang , He Yuan , Zhang Yao , Ji Ming‐lu , Chen Ying , Zhang Meng‐meng , Fan Yin‐guang , Wen Jia‐gen , Jin Juan , Wang Jie , Li Jun , Zhuang Chun‐lin , Liu Ming‐ming , Meng Xiao‐ming 
Published: May 2023

Background and PurposeNecroptosis plays an essential role in acute kidney injury and is mediated by receptor‐interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1), receptor‐interacting protein kinase 3 (RIPK3), and mixed lineage kinase domain‐like pseudokinase (MLKL). A novel RIPK3 inhibitor, compound 42 (Cpd‐42) alleviates the systemic inflammatory response. The current study was designed to investigate whether Cpd‐42 exhibits protective effects on acute kidney injury and reveal the underlying mechanisms.Experimental ApproachThe effects of Cpd‐42 were determined in vivo through cisplatin‐ and ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R)‐induced acute kidney injury and in vitro through cisplatin‐ and hypoxia/re‐oxygenation (H/R)‐induced cell damage. Transmission electron microscopy and periodic acid–Schiff staining were used to identify renal pathology. Cellular thermal shift assay and RIPK3‐knockout mouse renal tubule epithelial cells were used to explore the relationship between Cpd‐42 and RIPK3. Molecular docking and site‐directed mutagenesis were used to determine the binding site of RIPK3 with Cpd‐42.Key ResultsCpd‐42 reduced human proximal tubule epithelial cell line (HK‐2) cell damage, necroptosis and inflammatory responses in vitro. Furthermore, in vivo, cisplatin‐ and I/R‐induced acute kidney injury was alleviated by Cpd‐42 treatment. Cpd‐42 inhibited necroptosis by interacting with two key hydrogen bonds of RIPK3 at Thr94 and Ser146, which further blocked the phosphorylation of RIPK3 and mitigated acute kidney injury.Conclusion and ImplicationsActing as a novel RIPK3 inhibitor, Cpd‐42 reduced kidney damage, inflammatory response and necroptosis in acute kidney injury by binding to sites Thr94 and Ser146 on RIPK3. Cpd‐42 could be a promising treatment for acute kidney injury.
Homeobox A7 promotes esophageal squamous cell carcinoma progression through C‐C motif chemokine ligand 2‐mediated tumor‐associated macrophage recruitment
Authors: Feng Anqi , He Lingnan , Jiang Jiakai , Chu Yuan , Zhang Zehua , Fang Kang , Wang Zeyu , Li Zhaoxing , Sun Mingchuang , Zhao Ziying , Shi Jianing , Zhang Li , Chen Tao , Xu Meidong 
Published: May 2023

AbstractHomeobox A7 (HOXA7) plays essential roles in multiple malignancies and was reported to be overexpressed in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, its functions in the ESCC tumor microenvironment remain to be explored. In this study, we showed that HOXA7 was overexpressed in ESCC among HOXA family members and correlated with tumor‐associated macrophage (TAM) infiltration both in The Cancer Genome Atlas database and ESCC clinical samples. Moreover, transactivation of C‐C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2) by HOXA7 was identified (real‐time quantitative PCR [RT‐qPCR], western blot analysis, ELISA, and ChIP‐qPCR), which was detected to drive chemotaxis and M2 polarization of macrophages both in vitro (Transwell assay) and in vivo (xenograft tumors models). In addition, CCL2 triggers macrophage expression of epidermal growth factor (EGF) (RT‐qPCR and ELISA), which promotes tumor proliferation and metastasis by activating its receptor EGFR. In addition, EGF‐induced ESCC cell proliferation and migration can be abrogated by HOXA7 knockdown (CCK‐8 proliferation assay, EdU fluorescence, and Transwell assay). These results indicate a novel mechanistic role of HOXA7 in the cross‐talk between ESCC and TAMs, which could be an underlying therapeutic target for ESCC.