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Abstract Introduction An expert panel of Canadian dermatologists was assembled to develop consensus statements regarding the current landscape of topical therapies for plaque psoriasis and the place in therapy of the recently approved fixed-dose combination halobetasol propionate (HP)/tazarotene (TAZ) lotion (HP/TAZ) in the treatment algorithm for plaque psoriasis. Method A modified nominal group technique, which combined both independent and group input from the expert panel, was used to develop the consensus statements. The expert panel completed surveys to elicit their independent views on the current landscape of topical therapies for plaque psoriasis in Canada. The first expert panel session was held to discuss the existing body of literature and develop draft consensus statements about topical therapies and the place in therapy of HP/TAZ. Independent feedback on the draft consensus statements was solicited from expert panel members prior to another expert panel session where the amended consensus statements were further discussed, edited and, finally, voted on. Results The expert panel reached consensus on 20 statements. Conclusion Expert panel members agreed, based on the existing body of literature, that there is a place in therapy for HP/TAZ to address several current unmet treatment needs of patients with plaque psoriasis. Studies have shown that HP/TAZ is an effective and safe first-line treatment for moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. Due to its cosmetically pleasing vehicle and once-daily administration, HP/TAZ may improve patient acceptance and treatment adherence.

Abstract Structural and electronic characterization of (Cp′3Cm)2(μ−4,4′−bpy) (Cp′ = trimethylsilylcyclopentadienyl, 4,4′−bpy = 4,4′−bipyridine) is reported and provides a rare example of curium−carbon bonding. Cp′3Cm displays unexpectedly low energy emission that is quenched upon coordination by 4,4′−bipyridine. Electronic structure calculations on Cp′3Cm and (Cp′3Cm)2(μ−4,4′−bpy) rule out significant differences in the emissive state, rendering 4,4′−bipyridine as the primary quenching agent. Comparisons of (Cp′3Cm)2(μ−4,4′−bpy) with its samarium and gadolinium analogues reveal atypical bonding patterns and electronic features that offer insights into bonding between carbon with f-block metal ions. Here we show the structural characterization of a curium−carbon bond, in addition to the unique electronic properties never before observed in a curium compound.

The coordination environment has a great impact on the electronic structure, bonding and properties of metal complexes. Here the authors report a dinuclear organometallic americium complex that displays unexpectedly ionic Am−N bonding, but enhanced covalency in the Am−C bonds compared to its neodymium analogue.

Studying how the ligand design influences the bonding of f-block complexes is crucial to control their properties. Here, the authors report the preparation of Bk(III) and Ce(III) complexes featuring a terpyridyl ligand; structural, spectroscopic, electrochemical, and theoretical analysis reveal that the ligand induces unusual bonding by creating a plane of enhanced bond covalency.

Abstract Australia has over 30 Panicum spp. (panic grass) including several non-native species that cause crop and pasture loss and hepatogenous photosensitisation in livestock. It is critical to correctly identify them at the species level to facilitate the development of appropriate management strategies for efficacious control of Panicum grasses in crops, fallows and pastures. Currently, identification of Panicum spp. relies on morphological examination of the reproductive structures, but this approach is only useful for flowering specimens and requires significant taxonomic expertise. To overcome this limitation, we used multi-locus DNA barcoding for the identification of ten selected Panicum spp. found in Australia. With the exception of P. buncei, other native Australian Panicum were genetically separated at the species level and distinguished from non-native species. One nuclear (ITS) and two chloroplast regions (matK and trnL intron-trnF) were identified with varying facility for DNA barcode separation of the Panicum species. Concatenation of sequences from ITS, matK and trnL intron-trnF regions provided clear separation of eight regionally collected species, with a maximum intraspecific distance of 0.22% and minimum interspecific distance of 0.33%. Two of three non-native Panicum species exhibited a smaller genome size compared to native species evaluated, and we speculate that this may be associated with biological advantages impacting invasion of non-native Panicum species in novel locations. We conclude that multi-locus DNA barcoding, in combination with traditional taxonomic identification, provides an accurate and cost-effective adjunctive tool for further distinguishing Panicum spp. at the species level.

This article aims to reveal the political positioning of ‘mire nature’ in Finnish peatland policy and law. The data analysed include the latest policy documents, laws and regulations related to mires and peat extraction. Analysis is based on frame analysis (i.e. how an object is defined and positioned) and ideas drawn from a political ecology approach. Two main frames can be identified within the Finnish legal and policy framework: peat as a natural resource to be utilised for national energy sufficiency and economic competitiveness, and peat as a valuable source of biodiversity and an integral element of global ecosecurity. Analysis reveals the degree to which the definition of issues or objects in legal and policy terms is important in determining outcomes. It also reveals that national policies have swung back and forth and are prone to economic power struggles. Furthermore, while laws and regulations have offered strong and longstanding support for the extractive use of peat, the latest regulatory developments show a break from this trend. However, the arguments and facts concerning climate change are poorly integrated with Finnish peatland policy and law.

Unlike specific expression in the skin of wild mice, the agouti signaling protein (ASIP) is expressed widely in the tissue of cattle, including adipose and muscle tissue. Hence, it has been suggested that ASIP plays a role in bovine fat metabolism. An inserted L1-BT element was recently identified upstream of the ASIP locus which led to an ectopic expression of ASIP mRNA in cattle. In this study, we detected the indel of the L1-BT element at g. −14 643 nt and three SNPs in introns of the ASIP gene (g. −568A > G, g. −554A > T, and g. 4805A > T) in a Chinese Simmental steer population. The association analysis between variants of ASIP and economic traits showed that the homozygous genotype of L1-BT element insertion, AA genotype of g. −568A > G, and AT genotype of g. 4805A > T were significantly correlated with carcass and fat-related traits, such as live weight and back fat thickness. Moreover, three haplotypes (H1: AT; H2: AA; H3: GT) were identified by linkage disequilibrium analysis and formed six combined genotypes. Results indicated that Chinese Simmental steers with an H1H2 combined genotype had a higher measured value of fat-deposition-related traits (p), including thickness of back fat and percentage of carcass fat coverage, but a lower content of linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid (p). Individuals of an H3H3 combination had a lower marbling score, perirenal fat weight, and carcass weight (p). This suggests that these three SNPs and two combined haplotypes might be molecular markers for beef cattle breeding selection.

Excited atomic states of neutral einsteinium were investigated by resonant laser ionization using 10 pg (2×10^{10} atoms) of ^{254}Es. Ten transitions from the 5f^{11}7s^{2}^{4}I_{15/2}^{o} ground state to even-parity states were investigated in detail, via studies of lifetimes and further excitation steps into higher-lying odd-parity states below and above the first ionization potential. This led to the identification of 37 previously unknown odd-parity energy levels in the region between 37000 and 42500cm^{−1} and a number of autoionizing states, which ensure a high ion yield in resonant ionization. Rydberg states were identified and the corresponding Rydberg series converging either to the ionic ground or an excited state were analyzed to determine the first ionization potential of einsteinium to a value of E_{IP}=51364.58(14)_{stat}(50)_{sys}cm^{−1}, improving the previous result by a factor of four.

Structural changes in pre and postsynaptic neurons that accompany synapse formation often temporally and spatially overlap. Thus, it has been difficult to resolve which processes drive patterned connectivity. To overcome this, we use the laminated outer murine retina. We identify the serine/threonine kinase LKB1 as a key driver of synapse layer emergence. The absence of LKB1 in the retina caused a marked mislocalization and delay in synapse layer formation. In parallel, LKB1 modulated postsynaptic horizontal cell refinement and presynaptic photoreceptor axon growth. Mislocalized horizontal cell processes contacted aberrant cone axons in LKB1 mutants. These defects coincided with altered synapse protein organization, and horizontal cell neurites were misdirected to ectopic synapse protein regions. Together, these data suggest that LKB1 instructs the timing and location of connectivity in the outer retina via coordinate regulation of pre and postsynaptic neuron structure and the localization of synapse-associated proteins.

Direct removal of 99TcO4 − from highly radioactive and acidic nuclear waste solutions is beneficial for uranium and plutonium recovery and radioactive pollution control but this represents a huge challenge. Here the authors show a cationic polymeric network with high 99TcO4 − sorption capability and stability.

The title compound {systematic name: 3-carboxy-2-[2-(3-carboxypyridin-2-yl)disulfan-1-yl)]pyridin-1-ium chloride monohydrate}, C12H9N2O4S2+·Cl−·H2O, crystallizes in the triclinic space group P\overline{1}. A pair of 2-mercaptonicotinic acid moieties is connected by a 2,2′-disulfide bond with a dihedral angle of 78.79 (3)°. One of the N atom is protonated, as are both carboxylate groups, resulting in an overall +1 charge on the dimer. The structure comprises a zigzagging layer of the dimerized dithiodinicotinic acid rings, with charge-balancing chloride ions and water molecules between the layers. Hydrogen bonding between the chloride and water sites with the dimer appears to hold the structure together. Nearest neighbor nicotinic acid rings are offset when viewed down the a axis, suggesting no added stability from ring stacking. The asymmetric unit corresponds to the empirical formula of the compound, and it packs with two formula units per unit cell.

Cationic metal-organic frameworks provide promising opportunities to capture anionic pollutants, but stable frameworks with sufficiently large pores are lacking. Here the authors present a thorium-based mesoporous, cationic and hydrolytically-stable MOF that can rapidly trap inorganic and organic anionic pollutants.

Zirconium phosphonate based metal-organic frameworks often exhibit superior chemical stabilities, but typically exist as poorly crystalline or amorphous materials. Here the authors exploit an ionothermal method to obtain highly porous and remarkably stable single crystalline zirconium phosphonate frameworks that can efficiently remove uranyl ions from aqueous solutions.

Trivalent lanthanides possess similar chemical properties, making their separation from one another challenging. Here, Wang and colleagues demonstrate that their subtle chemical differences can be greatly amplified during borate crystallization, leading to a low cost and highly efficient separation strategy.

Presented herein is the crystal-structure redetermination of Li4ZrF8 from single-crystal X-ray data. Alkali zirconium fluorides are important in nuclear-relevant technologies, and zirconium is commonly employed as an analogue for tetravalent f-block elements. The previous structure report of this species is based on powder X-ray data [Dugat et al. (1995). J. Solid State Chem. 120, 187–196] but there has never been a refined structure model from single-crystal data. The octafluoridozirconate moieties are held together by electrostatic attraction to lithium ions without sharing of fluoride sites between zirconium(IV) ions.

Abstract Various types of polyoxometalates (POMs) have been synthesized since the 19th century, but their assortment has been mostly limited to Groups 5 and 6 metals. Herein, a new family of POMs composed of a carbon group element as the addenda atoms with two distinct phases, LnPbOClO4‐1 (Ln = Sm to Ho, Y) and LnPbOClO4‐2 (Ln = Er and Tm) is reported. Both structures are built from [Ln6O8] rare‐earth metal hexamers being incorporated in [Pb18O32]/[Pb12O24] polyplumbites, and unbound perchlorates as charge‐balancing anions. Impressively, YPbOClO4‐1 and ErPbOClO4‐2 exhibit exceptional uptake capacities (434.7 and 427.7 mg g−1) toward ReO4−, a chemical surrogate for the key radioactive fission product in the nuclear fuel cycle 99TcO4−, which are the highest values among all inorganic anion‐exchange materials reported until now. The sorption mechanism is clearly elucidated and visualized by single‐crystal‐to‐single‐crystal structural transformation from ErPbOClO4‐2 to a perrhenate‐containing complex ErPbOReO4, revealing a unique ReO4− uptake selectivity driven by specific interaction within Pb···O‐ReO3− bonds.

The heavy fermion compound URu2Si2displays a hidden order phase and superconductivity at low temperatures. Here, the authors perform substitution studies—partially replacing silicon with phosphorus—and study the effects on hidden order and superconductivity.

Among several potential animal models that can be used for adipogenic studies, Wagyu cattle is the one that presents unique molecular mechanisms underlying the deposit of substantial amounts of intramuscular fat. As such, this review is focused on current knowledge of such mechanisms related to adipose tissue deposition using Wagyu cattle as model. So abundant is the lipid accumulation in the skeletal muscles of these animals that in many cases, the muscle cross-sectional area appears more white (adipose tissue) than red (muscle fibers). This enhanced marbling accumulation is morphologically similar to that seen in numerous skeletal muscle dysfunctions, disease states and myopathies; this might indicate cross-similar mechanisms between such dysfunctions and fat deposition in Wagyu breed. Animal models can be used not only for a better understanding of fat deposition in livestock, but also as models to an increased comprehension on molecular mechanisms behind human conditions. This revision underlies some of the complex molecular processes of fat deposition in animals.

The isoflavone irilone is found in human plasma after ingestion of red clover-based dietary supplements, but information allowing safety assessment is rare. Here, data in support of the mutagenic potential of irilone in cultured V79 cells [1] are presented. These data include (i) a quantitative assessment of irilone in the culture medium during the cell culture experiments, (ii) changes in the mutation spectrum in cDNA of the hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase locus of irilone-treated V79 cells, (iii) occurrence of karyorrhexis and apoptosis as well as (iv) number of micronucleated cells containing whole chromosomes or chromosomal fragments. Also exemplary micrographs, used for the fluorescence microscopic assessment of (iii) and (iv) are presented.