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Among the several threats to the conservation of mangrove ecosystems in most South Asian countries, shrimp farming is predominant. Since the introduction of shrimp farming in Sri Lanka in the 1980s, mangroves on the island's north‐western coast have been continually cleared to create new shrimp farms, leading to a decline in the social‐ecological services provided by the mangrove ecosystems.Using aerial (1973) and satellite (1996–2020) images, this study assessed areal changes in mangroves and shrimp farms in the Pambala‐Chilaw lagoon complex and Ihala Mahawewa, as well as the ecological footprint of shrimp farming in the study area.Mangroves around the Chilaw lagoon had decreased in areal extent by 45% from 1973 to 2020 of which 92% of this change was attributed to shrimp farming. There was, however, a decrease in the areal extent of shrimp farms from 2001 to 2020, and a corresponding increase in mangroves from 2006 to 2020.The ecological footprint of shrimp farming was assessed by comparing the expected surface ratios with those recorded for shrimp farms with mangroves and surface water bodies in the study area from 1973 to 2020. The results showed that the current shrimp farming was unsustainable (i.e. high ecological footprint).While the results support the current view that there is cause for cautious optimism with mangrove conservation (as evidenced by an increase in mangrove areal extent), it also reveals that semi‐intensive shrimp farming in Sri Lanka and probably other similar tropical countries is unsustainable.If immediate actions such as effective regulation of shrimp farming activities and mangrove restoration are not taken, the mangrove ecosystem will continue to decline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct targeting of intrinsically disordered proteins, including MYC, by small molecules for biomedical applications would resolve a longstanding issue in chemical biology and medicine. Thus, we developed gold‐based small‐molecule MYC reagents that engage MYC inside cells and modulate MYC transcriptional activity. Lead compounds comprise an affinity ligand and a gold(I) or gold(III) warhead capable of protein chemical modification. Cell‐based MYC target engagement studies via CETSA and co‐immunoprecipitation reveal specific interaction of compounds with MYC in cells. The lead gold(I) reagent, 1, demonstrates superior cell‐killing potential (up to 35‐fold) in a MYC‐dependent manner when compared to 10058‐F4 in cells including the TNBC, MDA‐MB‐231. Subsequently, 1 suppresses MYC transcription factor activity via functional colorimetric assays, and gene‐profiling using whole‐cell transcriptomics reveals significant modulation of MYC target genes by 1. These findings point to metal‐mediated ligand affinity chemistry (MLAC) based on gold as a promising strategy to develop chemical probes and anticancer therapeutics targeting MYC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to quantify the levels and measure the health risk of selected heavy metals (Fe, Zn, Pb, Mn, Cr, Ni) in milled millet and maize from 10 communities in the Tolon District, northern region of Ghana. Control samples of maize and millet were also prepared in order to identify whether the sources of the heavy metals were limited to the milling process or otherwise. The heavy metals present in the collected milled samples were quantified using an AAS Varian Spectra 220 FS. The average concentrations of the selected heavy metals in the milled maize samples were the following: Fe = 1.3392 ± 0.4341 mg/kg, Ni = 0.9502 ± 0.2696 mg/kg, Pb = 2.2177 ± 0.0534 mg/kg, Cr = 0.4359 ± 0.3574 mg/kg, Zn = 0.6809 ± 0.0534 mg/kg, and Mn = 0.3550 ± 0.1042 mg/kg. Milled millet samples recorded mean concentration of the heavy metals as Fe = 1.9467 ± 1.0597 mg/kg, Ni = 0.9520 ± 0.1218 mg/kg, Pb = 2.2780 ± 0.0221 mg/kg, Cr = 0.3421 ± 0.1498 mg/kg, Zn = 0.8540 ± 0.1139 mg/kg, and Mn = 0.4241 ± 0.0859 mg/kg. All selected heavy metals concentrations were below standards in food except Pb. Locally made mill plates were found to leach heavy metals in the milled flours due to the direct contact of the grains with the mill plates. However, the comparison of milled to pounded flour (control samples) indicated other potential sources of heavy metals aside from the disk attrition mill. The health risk assessment revealed no potential hazards nor cancer risk in both children and adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]