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Understanding the responses of ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi and their tree hosts to warming and reduced soil water availability under realistic future climate scenarios is essential, yet few studies have investigated how combined global change stressors impact ECM fungal community richness and composition as well as host performance. In this study, we leveraged a long-term factorial warming (ambient, + 1.7 ºC, + 3.2 ºC) and rainfall reduction (ambient, 30% reduced rainfall) experiment in northern Minnesota, USA to investigate the responses of two congeneric hosts with varying drought tolerances and their associated ECM fungal communities to a gradient of soil moisture induced by a combination of warming and rainfall reduction. Soil drying had host-specific effects; the less drought tolerant Pinus strobus had decreased stem growth and lower ECM fungal community richness (fewer ECM fungal Operational Taxonomic Units, OTUs), while the more drought tolerant Pinus banksiana experienced no decline in stem growth but had an altered ECM fungal community composition under drier, warmer soils. Taken together, the results of this study suggest that the combined effects of warming and decreased precipitation will largely be additive in terms of their impact on host performance and ECM fungal community richness, but that drier and warmer soil conditions may also differentially impact specific ECM fungal genera independently of host performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bone marrow plasma cells (BMPC) are the correlate of humoral immunity, consistently releasing antibodies into the bloodstream. It remains unclear if BMPC reflect different activation environments or maturation of their precursors. Here we define human BMPC heterogeneity and track the recruitment of antibody-secreting cells (ASC) from SARS-CoV-2 vaccine immune reactions to the bone marrow (BM). Trajectories based on single-cell transcriptomes and repertoires of peripheral and BM ASC reveal sequential colonisation of BMPC compartments. In activated B cells, IL-21 suppresses CD19 expression, indicating that CD19low-BMPC are derived from follicular, while CD19high-BMPC originate from extrafollicular immune reactions. In primary immune reactions, both CD19low- and CD19high-BMPC compartments are populated. In secondary immune reactions, most BMPC are recruited to CD19high-BMPC compartments, reflecting their origin from extrafollicular reactivations of memory B cells. A pattern also observable in vaccinated-convalescent individuals and upon diphtheria/tetanus/pertussis recall-vaccination. Thus, BMPC diversity reflects the evolution of a given humoral immune response. The mechanisms driving B cell differentiation into resident bone marrow plasma cells (BMPC) remain unclear. Here the authors use single cell sequencing and BMPC phenotyping to infer developmental pathways and regulation by IL-21 in germinal centres to promote maintenance of BMPC after vaccination in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energetic stress compels cells to evolve adaptive mechanisms to adjust their metabolism. Inhibition of mTOR kinase complex 1 (mTORC1) is essential for cell survival during glucose starvation. How mTORC1 controls cell viability during glucose starvation is not well understood. Here we show that the mTORC1 effectors eukaryotic initiation factor 4E binding proteins 1/2 (4EBP1/2) confer protection to mammalian cells and budding yeast under glucose starvation. Mechanistically, 4EBP1/2 promote NADPH homeostasis by preventing NADPH-consuming fatty acid synthesis via translational repression of Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase 1 (ACC1), thereby mitigating oxidative stress. This has important relevance for cancer, as oncogene-transformed cells and glioma cells exploit the 4EBP1/2 regulation of ACC1 expression and redox balance to combat energetic stress, thereby supporting transformation and tumorigenicity in vitro and in vivo. Clinically, high EIF4EBP1 expression is associated with poor outcomes in several cancer types. Our data reveal that the mTORC1-4EBP1/2 axis provokes a metabolic switch essential for survival during glucose starvation which is exploited by transformed and tumor cells. How cells adapt to glucose starvation is still elusive. Here, Levy et al. show that the mTOR substrate 4EBP1 protects human, mouse, and yeast cells from glucose starvation and is exploited by cancer cells to promote tumorigenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Translational research requires data at multiple scales of biological organization. Advancements in sequencing and multi-omics technologies have increased the availability of these data, but researchers face significant integration challenges. Knowledge graphs (KGs) are used to model complex phenomena, and methods exist to construct them automatically. However, tackling complex biomedical integration problems requires flexibility in the way knowledge is modeled. Moreover, existing KG construction methods provide robust tooling at the cost of fixed or limited choices among knowledge representation models. PheKnowLator (Phenotype Knowledge Translator) is a semantic ecosystem for automating the FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) construction of ontologically grounded KGs with fully customizable knowledge representation. The ecosystem includes KG construction resources (e.g., data preparation APIs), analysis tools (e.g., SPARQL endpoint resources and abstraction algorithms), and benchmarks (e.g., prebuilt KGs). We evaluated the ecosystem by systematically comparing it to existing open-source KG construction methods and by analyzing its computational performance when used to construct 12 different large-scale KGs. With flexible knowledge representation, PheKnowLator enables fully customizable KGs without compromising performance or usability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Rheumatologie is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Botrytis cinerea is the etiological agent of gray mold in strawberries, a disease that is difficult to control and requires excessive fungicide application to avoid potential losses, increasing production costs, and allowing pathogen resistance to emerge. In this scenario, activating the plant's defense mechanisms with abiotic inducers may be a viable and ecological control solution. The objective was to analyze in vitro pathogen conidia growth, sporulation, and germination, as well as in vivo resistance responses by a potential inductor of glyceollin and deoxyanthocyanidin phytoalexins; and to quantify proteins, phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), total sugars and reducing sugars, and total phenols. The treatments evaluated were brown propolis ethanolic extract (PEE—20, 40, and 60 mL L−1); chitosan (1.0, 3.0, 5.0%) and acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM—10; 100 and 1000 mg a.i. L−1). At a dose of 20 mL L−1, the propolis ethanolic extract inhibited B. cinerea, while also accumulating glyceollin, deoxyanthocyanidin phytoalexins and subtly eliciting reducing sugars and PAL. Chitosan (1.0 and 3.0%) is also effective at controlling gray mold. At a dose of 100 mg L−1, the standard reference indicator (ASM) was able to reduce the incidence of pathogens in fruits while increasing total sugars and proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) share clinical as well as pathogenic similarities. Although previous studies suggest various abnormalities in different immune cell compartments, dedicated cell-type specific transcriptomic signatures are often masked by patient heterogeneity. Here, we performed transcriptional profiling of isolated CD4, CD8, CD16 and CD19 lymphocytes from pSS and SLE patients upon T cell stimulation, in addition to a steady-state condition directly after blood drawing, in total comprising 581 sequencing samples. T cell stimulation, which induced a pronounced inflammatory response in all four cell types, gave rise to substantial re-modulation of lymphocyte subsets in the two autoimmune diseases compared to healthy controls, far exceeding the transcriptomic differences detected at steady-state. In particular, we detected cell-type and disease-specific down-regulation of a range of pro-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine pathways. Such differences between SLE and pSS patients are instrumental for selective immune targeting by future therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Primary brain tumors are a leading cause of cancer-related death in children, and medulloblastoma is the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. The current molecular characterization of medulloblastoma is mainly based on protein-coding genes, while little is known about the involvement of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). This study aimed to elucidate the role of the lncRNA OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma. Methods: Analyses of DNA copy number alterations, methylation profiles, and gene expression data were used to characterize molecular alterations of OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma tissue samples. In vitro analyses of medulloblastoma cell models and orthotopic in vivo experiments were carried out for functional characterization of OTX2-AS1. High-throughput drug screening was employed to identify pharmacological inhibitors, while proteomics and metabolomics analyses were performed to address potential mechanisms of drug action. Results: We detected amplification and consecutive overexpression of OTX2 and OTX2-AS1 in a subset of medulloblastomas. In addition, OTX2-AS1 promoter methylation was linked to OTX2-AS1 expression. OTX2-AS1 knockout reduced medulloblastoma cell viability and cell migration in vitro and prolonged survival in the D283 orthotopic medulloblastoma mouse xenograft model. Pharmacological inhibition of BCL-2 suppressed the growth of OTX2-AS1 overexpressing medulloblastoma cells in vitro. Conclusions: Our study revealed a pro-tumorigenic role of OTX2-AS1 in medulloblastoma and identified BCL-2 inhibition as a potential therapeutic approach to target OTX2-AS1 overexpressing medulloblastoma cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pilocytic astrocytoma (PA), the most common pediatric brain tumor, is driven by aberrant mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling most commonly caused by BRAF gene fusions or activating mutations. While 5-year overall survival rates exceed 95%, tumor recurrence or progression constitutes a major clinical challenge in incompletely resected tumors. Here, we used similarity network fusion (SNF) analysis in an integrative multi-omics approach employing RNA transcriptomic and mass spectrometry-based proteomic profiling to molecularly characterize PA tissue samples from 62 patients. Thereby, we uncovered that PAs segregated into two molecularly distinct groups, namely, Group 1 and Group 2, which were validated in three non-overlapping cohorts. Patients with Group 1 tumors were significantly younger and showed worse progression-free survival compared to patients with group 2 tumors. Ingenuity pathways analysis (IPA) and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) revealed that Group 1 tumors were enriched for immune response pathways, such as interferon signaling, while Group 2 tumors showed enrichment for action potential and neurotransmitter signaling pathways. Analysis of immune cell-related gene signatures showed an enrichment of infiltrating T Cells in Group 1 versus Group 2 tumors. Taken together, integrative multi-omics of PA identified biologically distinct and prognostically relevant tumor groups that may improve risk stratification of this single pathway driven tumor type. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controlling dynamics of complex systems is one of the most important issues in science and engineering. Thus, there is continuous need to study and develop numerical algorithms of control methods. In this paper, we would like to present our introductory study of a new simple method of investigations of such systems based on vector field properties and reduced amount of applied information. Firstly, we present the basis of our approach for extraction of nonlinear indicators of two-dimensional systems. We show that basing on simplified analyses and exploiting half of commonly applied information, we can precisely estimate widely applied indicators. We prove that our method is simpler, more efficient and more accurate than commonly applied algorithms. After the introductory analysis, we extend our studies and apply the presented method in investigations of complex systems, based on the analysis that we discussed in the first part of the article and carried out in two-dimensional subspaces. We present simplicity and effectiveness of our approach and demonstrate how it simplifies investigations of complex dynamical phenomena. We verify our method studying the example of synchronization and chimera phenomena in the chosen set of coupled oscillators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warming shifts the thermal optimum of net photosynthesis (ToptA) to higher temperatures. However, our knowledge of this shift is mainly derived from seedlings grown in greenhouses under ambient atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) conditions. It is unclear whether shifts in ToptA of field-grown trees will keep pace with the temperatures predicted for the 21st century under elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Here, using a whole-ecosystem warming controlled experiment under either ambient or elevated CO2 levels, we show that ToptA of mature boreal conifers increased with warming. However, shifts in ToptA did not keep pace with warming as ToptA only increased by 0.26–0.35 °C per 1 °C of warming. Net photosynthetic rates estimated at the mean growth temperature increased with warming in elevated CO2 spruce, while remaining constant in ambient CO2 spruce and in both ambient CO2 and elevated CO2 tamarack with warming. Although shifts in ToptA of these two species are insufficient to keep pace with warming, these boreal conifers can thermally acclimate photosynthesis to maintain carbon uptake in future air temperatures. Acclimation of tree photosynthesis to warming may be affected by elevated CO2. Here, the authors show that mature boreal conifers may be able to maintain leaf-level C uptake under warming and elevated CO2 even if optimum temperature of photosynthesis does not track increased temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common data models solve many challenges of standardizing electronic health record (EHR) data but are unable to semantically integrate all of the resources needed for deep phenotyping. Open Biological and Biomedical Ontology (OBO) Foundry ontologies provide computable representations of biological knowledge and enable the integration of heterogeneous data. However, mapping EHR data to OBO ontologies requires significant manual curation and domain expertise. We introduce OMOP2OBO, an algorithm for mapping Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) vocabularies to OBO ontologies. Using OMOP2OBO, we produced mappings for 92,367 conditions, 8611 drug ingredients, and 10,673 measurement results, which covered 68–99% of concepts used in clinical practice when examined across 24 hospitals. When used to phenotype rare disease patients, the mappings helped systematically identify undiagnosed patients who might benefit from genetic testing. By aligning OMOP vocabularies to OBO ontologies our algorithm presents new opportunities to advance EHR-based deep phenotyping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Mycobacteria use a unique system for covalently modifying proteins based on the conjugation of a small protein, referred to as prokaryotic ubiquitin‐like protein (PUP). In this study, we report a proteome‐wide analysis of endogenous pupylation targets in the model organism Mycobacterium smegmatis. On affinity capture, a total of 243 candidate pupylation targets were identified by two complementary proteomics approaches. For 41 of these protein targets, direct evidence for a total of 48 lysine‐mediated pupylation acceptor sites was obtained by collision‐induced dissociation spectra. For the majority of these pupylation targets (38 of 41), orthologous genes are found in the M. tuberculosis genome. Interestingly, approximately half of these proteins are involved in intermediary metabolism and respiration pathways. A considerable fraction of the remaining targets are involved in lipid metabolism, information pathways, and virulence, detoxification and adaptation. Approximately one‐third of the genes encoding these targets are located in seven gene clusters, indicating functional linkages of mycobacterial pupylation targets. A comparison of the pupylome under different cell culture conditions indicates that substrate targeting for pupylation is rather dynamic.

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a disease of wheat caused by the Fusarium graminearum species complex in which Fusarium meridionale is included. The seed is an inoculum source and the use of inoculated seeds for this pathosystem studies can optimize the time of experimental tests. However early germination of seed during the inoculation process can make studies on the FHB pathosystem very challenging. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the optimal water restriction condition and time of exposure for inoculation of F. meridionale in wheat seeds without reducing seed germination, to define a reliable and rapid technique for inoculating FHB using wheat seeds. Mycelial discs of F. meridionale were placed in the center of Petri dishes containing potato dextrose agar (PDA) media with different quantities of mannitol to establish water potentials of −0.4, −0.6, −0.8, −1.0 or − 1.2 MPa. A control plate with only PDA had −0.36 MPa. Mycelial growth was measured for 178 hours post inoculation (hpi). Wheat seeds were placed in contact with the mycelium at 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60 hpi. Seed germination and seed pathology were evaluated. The greatest growth of the pathogen was at water potentials between −0.8 and − 1.06 MPa. Seed germination was not affected by the water potential at 12 hpi. It was verified that at −1.0 MPa the seeds did not germinate early, and the pathogen was detected in 100% of the inoculated seeds. Thus, the use of mannitol at water potential of −1.0 MPa and seed contact with the pathogen at 12 hpi is a method that can be used for inoculation of F. meridionale in wheat seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global phosphate rock reserves that underpin phosphorus (P) fertiliser production are finite. Recovery of P from waste streams (e.g., by producing fertiliser products from sewage sludge) is an important way to conserve scarce P resources. This study evaluated the P fertiliser and soil pH amendment values of a municipal sewage sludge ash (SA) for pasture growth on three acidic soils with contrasting P buffering and P sorption ("fixation") characteristics. Growth of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) and incubation of the fertilisers with soil were used to compare the initial (following application) and residual (following incubation with soil) fertiliser values of SA with those of single superphosphate (SSP). Soil pHCa was increased linearly by application of SA. The lime-equivalent value of SA was ~ 33% (product weight basis). The initial P-fertiliser value of SSP was substantially greater than that of SA in all three soils. For both P sources, initial fertiliser value was negatively related with the P buffering capacity of the soil. The residual P fertiliser value of SSP ranged from low (42% of initial fertiliser value) to relatively high (82%) indicating differences among the soils in their P sorption capacities. The residual value of SA was better than that of SSP in soils that exhibited strong P-sorption capacities. Standard soil-P tests (i.e., Colwell P, CaCl2-P, Bray-1 P) that are often used in combination with SSP, underpredicted the fertiliser value of SA. This indicated a need to recalibrate these soil tests for use with SA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Circuit quantum electrodynamics (cQED) experiments on superconducting qubit systems typically employ radiation shields coated in photon absorbing materials to achieve high qubit coherence and low microwave resonator losses. In this work, we present preliminary results on the performance of Vantablack as a novel infrared (IR) shielding material for cQED systems. We compare the coherence properties and residual excited state population (or effective qubit temperature) of a single-junction transmon qubit housed in a shield coated with a standard epoxy-based IR absorbing material, i.e. Berkeley Black, to the coherence and effective temperature of the same qubit in a shield coated in Vantablack. Based on a statistical analysis of multiple qubit coherence measurements, we find that the performance of the radiation shield coated with Vantablack is comparable in performance to the standard coating. However, we find that in the Vantablack coated shield the qubit has a higher effective temperature. These results indicate that improvements are likely required to optimize the performance of Vantablack as an IR shielding material for superconducting qubit experiments and we discuss possible routes for such improvements. Finally, we describe possible future experiments to more precisely quantify the performance of Vantablack to improve the coherences of more complex cQED systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sensitivity of forests to near-term warming and associated precipitation shifts remains uncertain1–9. Herein, using a 5-year open-air experiment in southern boreal forest, we show divergent responses to modest climate alteration among juveniles of nine co-occurring North American tree species. Warming alone (+1.6 °C or +3.1 °C above ambient temperature) or combined with reduced rainfall increased the juvenile mortality of all species, especially boreal conifers. Species differed in growth responses to warming, ranging from enhanced growth in Acer rubrum and Acer saccharum to severe growth reductions in Abies balsamea, Picea glauca and Pinus strobus. Moreover, treatment-induced changes in both photosynthesis and growth help explain treatment-driven changes in survival. Treatments in which species experienced conditions warmer or drier than at their range margins resulted in the most adverse impacts on growth and survival. Species abundant in southern boreal forests had the largest reductions in growth and survival due to climate manipulations. By contrast, temperate species that experienced little mortality and substantial growth enhancement in response to warming are rare throughout southern boreal forest and unlikely to rapidly expand their density and distribution. Therefore, projected climate change will probably cause regeneration failure of currently dominant southern boreal species and, coupled with their slow replacement by temperate species, lead to tree regeneration shortfalls with potential adverse impacts on the health, diversity and ecosystem services of regional forests.The survival of southern boreal tree saplings decreases in response to even modest warming and reduced rainfall, which,together with species-specific growth responses, could lead to regeneration failure of currently dominant tree species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the experimental identification of the friction force in the inerter with constant and variable inertance. The change of intertance is possible due to the implementation of continuously variable transition in the gear train. As a result of our study, we created robust models that can be applied to various devices equipped with inerters. We designed and built the experimental rig, which enables us to enforce the motion of examined systems along the assumed path of the motion, with maximum velocity up to 1 [ m / s ] . With the proper analysis, we extract the friction force. Then, we propose mathematical models of friction force based on static Coulomb and dynamic LuGre models. Additionally, we use the artificial neural network to model the friction force characteristic. Finally, we validate created models with additional sets of experimental data. The LuGre model and the artificial neural network replicate the real response efficiently, and both approaches can be used for precise modeling of the systems' motion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small, volant and nocturnal, bats face strong challenges to avoid heat loss. Among aerial insectivores, body mass varies by two orders of magnitude between the smallest and the largest species. At low temperatures, physiological constraints should be harsher for smaller bats, as they lose more heat through their body surface than larger species. So, temperature variations should lead to distinct behavioural responses by bats of different body masses. Also, because they feed on arthropods, dependent on ambient temperature, aerial insectivores should halt feeding at low temperatures. Using ultrasound detectors and temperature and humidity sensors, we investigated how aerial insectivores of the coldest region in austral Brazil respond to nightly temperature variations and compared those responses between guilds of distinct body masses. We predict that smaller bats reduce their activity faster than larger bats, but that foraging should reduce simultaneously in the two guilds, as they depend on ectothermic prey. Bat activity reduced significantly below 12 °C. Larger bats maintained their activity at temperatures where the activity of smaller bats had already halted. However, larger bats foraged mostly during the first half of the night, at higher temperatures than those chosen by smaller bats to forage. We associate these differential responses to the thermal convection process, which may increase prey availability at higher altitudes, where larger molossids are known to forage. Smaller species, mostly edge-space hunters, probably take advantage of less variable prey availability during the night, resulting in a more regular behavioural pattern of navigation and foraging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most important risk factor for cervical cancer, although not the only one. The allelic polymorphism of enzymes acting on carcinogen metabolism has shown to influence the risk of both intraepithelial lesions and cervical carcinogenesis. Several studies found an association between GSTM1/GSTT1 null genotypes and risk of cancer. This research aimed to review studies addressing the relationship between GSTT1 and GSTM1 and HPV infection in women, with or without cervical pathologies. A database search was conducted in four databases – PubMed, LILACS, SciELO, and Virtual Health Library – using the following descriptors: Glutathione transferase, HPV, and Genetic polymorphism. In total, we found 319 studies. After screening titles and abstracts, 27 articles were selected for full-text read, among which 20 were excluded and 7 were included in the review. No study has exclusively approached the relationship between the virus and GSTM1/GSTT1 variants. However, studies investigating the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and cervical lesions or cancer found a probable relationship between them and infections with high-risk oncogenic subtypes. Although inconclusive, GSTT1 null alleles were more common in women with more aggressive HPV than GSTM1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The protein kinase TBK1 is a central regulator of innate immune responses and autophagy, and ablation of either function has been linked to neuroinflammatory or degenerative diseases. Autophagy is an intracellular process that recycles old or damaged proteins and organelles. In recent years, the TBK1-dependent regulation of autophagy pathways has been characterized. However, the autophagy-dependent regulation of TBK1 activity awaits further clarification. Here, we observed that TBK1 is recruited to SQSTM1/p62-containing aggregates via the selective autophagy receptor TAX1BP1. In these aggregates, TBK1 phosphorylates SQSTM1/p62 at serine 403 and thus presumably regulates the efficient engulfment and clearance of these structures. We found that TBK1 activation is strongly increased if FIP200, a component of the autophagy-inducing ULK1 complex, is not present or cannot bind to TAX1BP1. Given our collective findings, we hypothesize that FIP200 ensures the inducible activation of TBK1 at SQSTM1/p62 condensates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The use of two solvent-casted film methods to select optimal polymer compositions for amorphous solid dispersions prepared to support preclinical pharmacokinetic and toxicology studies is described. Methods: Evaporation of solvent from cover slips by using nitrogen flow, and solvent removal from vials by using rotary evaporation were employed. The films prepared on cover slips were evaluated under the microscope to determine crystallinity. The methods were validated by scaling up corresponding SDDs, evaluating SDD's dissolution, and comparing those results to the dissolution of drug-polymer films. Subsequently, SDD suspensions were prepared and dosed orally to rats to determine pharmacokinetic parameters. This was done by using three compounds from our pipeline and evaluating multiple polymers. Results: The dissolution of generated films showed good agreement with the dissolution of spray dried dispersions when the films were fully amorphous (Compound A and B). In contrast, there was disagreement between film and SDD dissolution when the films had crystallized (Compound C). The in vivo exposure results indicated that the polymer choice based on the film screening methods would have been accurate for drug-polymer films that were amorphous (Compound A and B). Two additional case studies (Compound D and E) are presented, showing good agreement between in vivo and in vitro results. Conclusion: This study established the ability of two film casting screening methods to predict the in vitro and in vivo performance of corresponding SDDs, provided that the films are fully amorphous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging contaminants (ECs) include endocrine-disrupting compounds, pharmaceuticals (lipid regulators, antibiotics, diuretics, non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs, stimulant drugs, antiseptics, analgesic, beta blockers), detergents, disinfectants, and personal care products. The residues from these compounds have become a concerning because of their bioactive presence on environmental matrices, especially water bodies. The development of technologies, aiming the secure and efficient removal of these compounds from the environment or event to remove them before they achieve the environment, is necessary. In these context, the present review is about promising eco-friendly, low-cost and specially applied, including biological processes using microalgae, bacteria, enzymes produced by fungi, and adsorbent materials such as those recycled from other processes waste. The processes where revised considering the removal mechanism and the efficiency rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Rheuma Plus is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Controlling dynamics of nonlinear systems is one of the most important issues in science and engineering. Thus, there is continuous need to study and develop numerical algorithms of control methods. Among the most frequently applied invariants characterizing different aspects of a systems' dynamics are Lyapunov exponents, fast Lyapunov index, angles of small deviations, fractal dimension or entropy. There exist many different methods of estimation of these indicators. In this paper, modification of our novel method is presented. We have shown that LLE can be estimated from the vector field properties by means of the most basic mathematical operations. Results of efficiency measurements for typical mechanical, electrical and random systems were discussed. We have proved that discussed modification introduced to our method makes the LLE estimation 17–53% faster than using classical algorithms. In addition, unlike the results presented in our previous publication, an improvement in performance was achieved for each of the analyzed cases. As such, the new approach lends to prospective application of LLE not only in dynamical systems' stability investigations, but also in real-time control of systems since the basic calculations and fast, effective method of LLE estimation can be applied even in simple microcontrollers. Our approach could be also applied in investigations of vector field properties, global stability or basins of attraction analyses, allowing for huge time savings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamics of the ring of unidirectionally coupled single-well Duffing oscillators is analyzed in numerical simulation for identical nodal oscillators. The research is concentrated on the existence of the stable 3D torus attractor in this system. It is shown that 3-frequency quasi-periodicity can be robustly stable in wide range of parameters of the system under consideration. As an explanation of this stability, the conjecture on the coexistence and superposition of two independent effects characterized with irrational frequencies, i.e., the classical Newhouse, Ruelle and Takens scenario and rotating wave flow, is formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the phenomenon of the GS only in the context of unidirectional connection between identical exciter and receivers. A special attention is focused on the properties of the GS in coupled non-smooth Chua circuits. The robustness of the synchronous state is analyzed in the presence of slight parameter mismatch. The analysis tools are transversal and response Lyapunov exponents and fractal dimension of the attractor. These studies show differences in the stability of synchronous states between smooth (Lorenz system) and non-smooth (Chua circuit) oscillators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Typically, to estimate the whole spectrum of n Lyapunov Exponents (LEs), it is necessary to integrate n perturbations and to orthogonalize them. Recently it has been shown that complexity of calculations can be reduced for smooth systems: integration of (n-1) perturbations is sufficient. In this paper authors demonstrate how this simplified approach can be adopted to non-smooth or discontinuous systems. Apart from the reduced complexity, the assets of the presented approach are simplicity and ease of implementation. The paper starts with a short review of properties of LEs and methods of their estimation for smooth and non-smooth systems. Then, the algorithm of reduced complexity for smooth systems is shortly introduced. Its adaptation to non-smooth systems is described in details. Application of the method is presented for an impact oscillator. Implementation of the novel algorithm is comprehensively explained. Results of simulations are presented and validated. It is expected that the presented method can simplify investigations of non-smooth dynamical systems and support research in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enzymes are becoming tools in industrial processes because of several advantages, including activity in mild environmental conditions, and high specificity. Peroxidase, for one, stably oxidizes several substrates. The present study aimed to develop advanced oxidation processes (AOP), using non-commercial rice bran peroxidase to remove color and toxicity of synthetic textile wastewater. Using a microwave and shaker system, we obtained 38.9% and 100% of effluent color removal after peroxidase treatment, respectively. In addition, the shaker system decants residual dye particles through filtration, providing the textile industry with an economical and environmentally viable alternative to effluent treatment. In toxicity tests results, both treatment systems damaged the used genetic material. This damage occurs because of industrial discharge of wastewater into water bodies; effluent dilution reduced this damage. The data suggest that peroxidase as a textile effluent treatment has potential uses in industrial processes, because rice bran peroxidase has demonstrated affinity with dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Swine production chain generates residues with potential application in environmental processes. This study aimed at the use of swine hair as a potential biofilter for hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) removal from wastewater of tannery industry. The hair was pretreated using H2O2 in alkaline medium, and statistical analysis was carried out to evaluate the hair degradation, as well the Cr(VI) removal by the potential pretreated biofilter. The results showed 99% of Cr(VI) removal in 105 min of treatment in large pH range (1–10). Treated and untreated effluents were submitted to cytotoxicity study using vegetable and animal cells, demonstrating a significant reduction on toxicity to both cells. Therefore, swine hair demonstrated to be a promising residue for heavy metal removal on the perspective of an environmentally friendly technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate warming will influence photosynthesis via thermal effects and by altering soil moisture1-11. Both effects may be important for the vast areas of global forests that fluctuate between periods when cool temperatures limit photosynthesis and periods when soil moisture may be limiting to carbon gain4-6,9-11. Here we show that the effects of climate warming flip from positive to negative as southern boreal forests transition from rainy to modestly dry periods during the growing season. In a three-year open-air warming experiment with juveniles of 11 temperate and boreal tree species, an increase of 3.4 °C in temperature increased light-saturated net photosynthesis and leaf diffusive conductance on average on the one-third of days with the wettest soils. In all 11 species, leaf diffusive conductance and, as a result, light-saturated net photosynthesis decreased during dry spells, and did so more sharply in warmed plants than in plants at ambient temperatures. Consequently, across the 11 species, warming reduced light-saturated net photosynthesis on the two-thirds of days with driest soils. Thus, low soil moisture may reduce, or even reverse, the potential benefits of climate warming on photosynthesis in mesic, seasonally cold environments, both during drought and in regularly occurring, modestly dry periods during the growing season. Low soil moisture may reduce, or even reverse, the potential benefits of climate warming on photosynthesis in mesic, seasonally cold environments, both during drought and in regularly occurring, modestly dry periods during the growing season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change is increasing global temperatures, severe rainfall events, and the occurrence and severity of drought. Changes in global climate may have negative consequences for particular plant species and for biodiversity overall. In the short term, altered temperature and precipitation regimes may have the most severe effects on plant species near their range limits and in the earliest stages of plant development. To address these issues, we assessed seedling emergence, early survival, and growth of 18 boreal, temperate, and exotic woody species at the boreal-temperate forest ecotone in central Minnesota. We experimentally warmed forest plots to mimic projected warming by the end of the twenty-first century (+ 1.7 °C and + 3.4 °C). We also experimentally removed summer rainfall (~ 42% reduction) to simulate drought conditions in this region. We found that emergence and survival of boreal and exotic species was lower in experimentally warmed plots. This was exacerbated by drought. Temperate species emergence and survival was largely unaffected by climate manipulations (on average). Conversely, temperate seedling growth was greater in warmer conditions, but only when paired with drought. We found that overall seedling species richness was reduced by warming, mostly due to lower boreal and exotic species emergence and survival (conifers were also strongly negatively affected across species-range groups). If temperate seedling emergence and survival does not compensate for loss of boreal species, these forests may experience loss of biodiversity (and associated ecosystem functions) in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: The growth and root morphology responses to soil phosphorus (P) fertility by five cultivars of Trifolium subterraneum (a temperate annual pasture legume) were examined to assess whether differences in root morphology and/or root acclimation to P stress influenced P-acquisition by the clover varieties, or their critical P requirements (i.e. the rate of P supply needed for maximum shoot yield).Methods: The clovers were grown as microswards in soil with P stratified in a topsoil layer to mimic growth conditions and soil P availability in a pasture. Yield and P content of shoots, and roots from the topsoil and subsoil layers was determined after 5 weeks growth in a controlled-environment cabinet. The lengths, diameters, and root hair lengths of nutrient foraging roots from the topsoil layer were quantified.Results: The shoot yield of the cultivars was similar when grown with high soil P fertility. However, the cultivars varied up to 1.5-fold in their ability to yield at low levels of soil P supply, and by 1.6-fold in their critical P requirements. All cultivars acclimated to low P soil by increasing root length density in the topsoil but those that yielded relatively well did so by maintaining a large root hair cylinder volume (i.e. they explored more soil) under low soil P conditions. This was associated with maintenance of dry matter allocations to topsoil roots and higher specific root lengths. Both factors assisted development of high root length density for nutrient foraging. Root acclimation responses to P were compared among the cultivars at equivalent relative shoot yields to assess the influence of plant P stress as a trigger for nutrient foraging. The least P-efficient cultivars slowed their allocation of dry matter to foraging roots at lower levels of P stress.Conclusions: The results suggest variation within T. subterraneum for root proliferation and specific root length could be targeted in breeding for improved P-acquisition efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To identify the key formulation factors controlling the initial drug and polymer dissolution rates from an amorphous solid dispersion (ASD). Methods: Ketoconazole (KTZ) ASDs using PVP, PVP-VA, HMPC, or HPMC-AS as polymeric matrix were prepared. For each drug-polymer system, two types of formulations with the same composition were prepared: 1. Spray dried dispersion (SDD) that is homogenous at molecular level, 2. Physical blend of SDD (80% drug loading) and pure polymer (SDD-PB) that is homogenous only at powder level. Flory-Huggins interaction parameters (χ) between KTZ and the four polymers were obtained by Flory-Huggins model fitting. Solution C NMR and FT-IR were conducted to investigate the specific drug-polymer interaction in the solution and solid state, respectively. Intrinsic dissolution of both the drug and the polymer from ASDs were studied using a Higuchi style intrinsic dissolution apparatus. PXRD and confocal Raman microscopy were used to confirm the absence of drug crystallinity on the tablet surface before and after dissolution study. Results: In solid state, KTZ is completely miscible with PVP, PVP-VA, or HPMC-AS, demonstrated by the negative χ values of −0.36, −0.46, −1.68, respectively; while is poorly miscible with HPMC shown by a positive χ value of 0.23. According to solution C NMR and FT-IR studies, KTZ interacts with HPMC-AS strongly through H-bonding and dipole induced interaction; with PVPs and PVP-VA moderately through dipole-induced interactions; and with HPMC weakly without detectable attractive interaction. Furthermore, the 'apparent' strength of drug-polymer interaction, measured by the extent of peak shift on NMR or FT-IR spectra, increases with the increasing number of interacting drug-polymer pairs. For ASDs with the presence of considerable drug-polymer interactions, such as KTZ/PVPs, KTZ/PVP-VA, or KTZ /HPMC-AS systems, drug released at the same rate as the polymer when intimate drug-polymer mixing was ensured (i.e., the SDD systems); while drug released much slower than the polymer when molecular level mixing or drug-polymer interaction was absent (SDD-PB systems). For ASDs without drug-polymer interaction (i.e., KTZ/HPMC systems), the mixing homogeneity had little impact on the release rate of either the drug or the polymer thus SDD and SDD-PB demonstrated the same drug or polymer release rate, while the drug released slowly and independently of polymer release. Conclusions: The initial drug release from an ASD was controlled by 1) the polymer release rate; 2) the strength of drug-polymer interaction, including the intrinsic interaction caused by the chemistry of the drug and the polymer (measured by the χ value), as well as that the apparent interaction caused by the drug-polymer ratio (measure by the extent of peak shift on spectroscopic analysis); and 3) the level of mixing homogeneity between the drug and polymer. In summary, the selection of polymer, drug-polymer ratio, and ASD processing conditions have profound impacts on the dissolution behavior of ASDs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: This work aimed to quantify the critical external requirement for phosphorus (P) (i.e. extractable-P concentration required for 90 % of maximum yield) for a number of temperate legume species and understand differences in dry matter allocation, P distribution and P acquisition efficiency among these species. Methods: Shoot and root growth of five legume and one grass species was assessed in response to six rates of P mixed into the top 45 mm of soil in a pot experiment. Dactylis glomerata and Trifolium subterraneum were used as benchmark species; they are commonly grown together in mixed temperate pastures and have low and high critical external requirements for P, respectively. Growth was compared with four alternative legume species: Ornithopus compressus, Ornithopus sativus, Biserrula pelecinus and Trifolium hirtum, that have root morphologies better suited to soil exploration and nutrient acquisition than that of Trifolium subterraneum. Results: Dactylis glomerata, Ornithopus compressus and Ornithopus sativus had maximum yields equal to or greater than Trifolium subterraneum but achieved this at rates of P less than half that of Trifolium subterraneum. Biserrula pelecinus and Trifolium hirtum had critical P requirements between that of Trifolium subterraneum and the Ornithopus species, but also had lower yields. Root dry matter of Dactylis glomerata and the Ornithopus species in the fertilised soil layer was only marginally changed in response to low P supply. In contrast, Trifolium subterraneum, Trifolium hirtum and to a lesser extent Biserrula pelecinus markedly increased root dry matter allocation to this soil layer. Species with lower critical P requirements were able to take up more P per unit root dry mass than those with higher critical P requirements, particularly at lower levels of P addition. Conclusions: The high P acquisition efficiencies of the Ornithopus species and Dactylis glomerata were likely to have contributed to their low critical external P requirements. It was surmised that differences in root morphology traits underpin the differences in acclimation to low P stress and P acquisition efficiency among the species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The legumes most often used in temperate pastures such as Trifolium subterraneum have relatively high external P requirements for maximum growth. We investigated root traits associated with P acquisition in current and novel pasture legumes, as well as temperate grasses which have lower P requirements. Methods: Thirteen legume species, two pasture grasses, and three high carboxylate-exuding crop species ( Lupinus albus, L. angustifolius, Cicer arietinum) were grown in a glasshouse for six weeks. Rhizosphere carboxylates and root morphological traits were measured. Results: Ornithopus spp. had rhizosphere carboxylates in similar quantities to the Lupinus spp. (> 40 μmol g root dry mass) . Trifolium subterraneum lines had relatively large average root diameter, reduced specific root length and very short average root hair length resulting in specific root hair cylinder volumes (RHCVs) only 14-20 % of the grasses. However, O. sativus, O. compressus and Biserrula pelecinus had specific RHCVs more comparable to the grasses. Conclusions: Novel pasture legume species with root morphology more comparable to that of grasses than T. subterraneum were identified. Of these, Ornithopus spp. were notable as they also had high rhizosphere carboxylates relative to root dry mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Populations near the warm edge of species ranges may be particularly sensitive to climate change, but lack of empirical data on responses to warming represents a key gap in understanding future range dynamics. Herein we document the impacts of experimental warming on the performance of 11 boreal and temperate forest species that co-occur at the ecotone between these biomes in North America. We measured in situ net photosynthetic carbon gain and growth of >4,100 juvenile trees from local seed sources exposed to a chamberless warming experiment that used infrared heat lamps and soil heating cables to elevate temperatures by +3.4 °C above- and belowground for three growing seasons across 48 plots at two sites. In these ecologically realistic field settings, species growing nearest their warm range limit exhibited reductions in net photosynthesis and growth, whereas species near their cold range limit responded positively to warming. Differences among species in their three-year growth responses to warming parallel their photosynthetic responses to warming, suggesting that leaf-level responses may scale to whole-plant performance. These responses are consistent with the hypothesis, from observational data and models, that warming will reduce the competitive ability of currently dominant southern boreal species compared with locally rarer co-occurring species that dominate warmer neighbouring regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]