The spatial and temporal variability of gravity waves (GWs) potential energy (Ep) over South America (SA) was examined by analyzing temperature profiles obtained through the utilization of Sounding ...of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) from January 2002 to December 2021. We used the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis to decompose GWs parameters and to analyze the GW variations over SA. We considered the first three eigenmodes (EOF1, EOF2, and EOF3) and their principal components (PC1, PC2, and PC3) of the EOF decomposition, which accounts for ∼80–90% of the total GWs variation over SA. Further, we analyzed the coupled variation of Ep and zonal mean wind (
U
) to verify their inter-dependencies using the singular value decomposition (SVD). The spatial variation showed that different localized mechanisms generate GWs at different sectors of the continent. The EOF1 of Ep comprised more than 50%, the EOF2 ∼20–25%, and the third ∼10–15% of the total GWs variation. The positive variation of GWs energy in the EOF1 is localized in the tropical region from the lower stratosphere to the lower mesosphere and southward below 1.5° S in the upper mesosphere. The spectral analysis of GWs energy showed biannual, annual, semiannual, and 11-year variations at different eigenvectors. Relative Ep (REp) showed an asymmetric hemispheric response to solar flux over South America. The REp response to QBO showed a modulating effect below 70 km and a positive response above 70 km. There is a good positive correlation between the temporal component of EOF2 of Ep and the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) at 30 mb and 50 mb in the PC2 temporal variation.
Graphical Abstract
Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has been established as a reliable bariatric procedure, but questions have emerged regarding its long-term results. Our aim is to report the long-term outcomes ...of LSG as a primary bariatric procedure.
Retrospective analysis of patients submitted to LSG between 2005 and 2007 in our institution. Long-term outcomes at 5 years were analyzed in terms of body mass index (BMI), excess weight loss (EWL) and co-morbidities resolution. Surgical success was defined as %EWL>50%. Also, we compared long-term results according to preoperative BMI, using Mann-Whitney test.
A total of 161 LSG were analyzed, and 114 patients (70.8%) were women. The median age was 36 years old (range 16-65), median preoperative BMI was 34.9 kg/m(2) (interquartile range IQR, 33.3-37.5). A total of 112 patients (70%) completed 5 years of follow-up. At the fifth year, median BMI and %EWL was 28.5 kg/m(2) (IQR: 25.8-31.9) and 62.9% (IQR: 45.3-89.6), respectively, with a surgical success of 73.2% of followed patients. According to preoperative BMI, surgical success was achieved in 80% of patients with BMI<35 kg/m(2), 75% of BMI 35-40 kg/m(2), and 52.6% of BMI>40 kg/m(2), with significant lower %EWL in patients with BMI>40 kg/m(2) (P = .001 and .004). Dyslipidemia and insulin resistance resolution was 80.7% and 84.7%, respectively. A total of 26.7% of patients reported new-onset gastroesophageal reflux symptoms at 5 years.
LSG as a primary procedure is a reliable surgery. We observed positive long-term outcomes of %EWL and co-morbidities resolution. In our series, best results are seen in patients with preoperative BMI<40 kg/m(2).
Interaction between Equatorial Plasma Bubbles (EPBs) and midnight Brightness wave (MBW) was observed over Bom Jesus da Lapa (13.3° S, 43.5° W; Quasi-Dipole geomagnetic latitude of 14.1° S), using OI ...630 nm all-sky images. On the night of December 22nd, 2019, an EPB was seen propagating eastward in its fossil stage until it interacted with an MBW. After the interaction, the west walls of EPBs generated secondary instabilities that can be associated with gradient drift instability (GDI) and/or Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities (KHI). We suggest that the MBW contributed to generate a shear in the EPBs walls due to changes in the thermospheric dynamics, such as neutral wind in the F layer height. Furthermore, spectral analysis of the all-sky images suggests that GDI and/or KHI generated turbulence and helped to dissipate the EPBs.
Graphical Abstract
Using COSMIC-2 and METOP radio occultation measurements during the years 2020 and 2021, the study presents the first direct and independent relationship between the potential energy (E
p
) in the ...stratosphere, precipitable water vapour (PWV), tropopause heights (TPH), and cold-point heights (CPH) over South America. The South American continent comprises the tropical region, the Andes Mountain range, and mid-latitude climates. The seasonal mean of the potential energy (E
p
), the PWV, and the tropopause parameters height (TPH and CPH) were obtained to investigate the relationship between the stratospheric gravity wave (SGW) E
p
and the tropospheric parameters (PWV, TPH, and CPH). Around the Andes Mountains to the east, there is significantly less water vapour (PWV < 10 mm) and a relatively high gravity wave E
p
(E
p
> 8 kJ kg
−
1
). A good correlation of variability was found between the PWV and the lower SGW E
p
in summer over the tropical region (± 20
◦
). Generally, good and strong correlations were observed in the summer and spring, with negative/no correlations in the winter in 2020 and 2021. Also, good and strong correlations between SGW, PWV, and TPH were observed in the summer at
20
o
N
-
10
o
N
in 2020 and 2021. Our result demonstrated the possibility that convective activity was a major driver of the tropical gravity waves over South America. In the subtropical (30
∘
–40
∘
) region, especially in the winter, the tropospheric parameters make little or no contribution to gravity wave activity in the region. The CPH generally showed a no/negative with SGW over the South American tropics. The SGW activities in the tropical region showed an impact on the structure of the tropopause parameters, which could be a result of the convective activity in this region.
Graphical Abstract
A ground-based network of GNSS receivers has been used to monitor equatorial
plasma bubbles (EPBs) by mapping the total electron content (TEC map). The
large coverage of the TEC map allowed us to ...monitor several EPBs
simultaneously and get characteristics of the dynamics, extension and
longitudinal distributions of the EPBs from the onset time until their
disappearance. These characteristics were obtained by using TEC map analysis
and the keogram technique. TEC map databases analyzed were for the period
between November 2012 and January 2016. The zonal drift velocities of the
EPBs showed a clear latitudinal gradient varying from 123 m s−1 at the
Equator to 65 m s−1 for 35∘ S latitude. Consequently,
observed EPBs are inclined against the geomagnetic field lines. Both zonal
drift velocity and the inclination of the EPBs were compared to the
thermospheric neutral wind, which showed good agreement. Moreover, the large
two-dimensional coverage of TEC maps allowed us to study periodic EPBs with a
wide longitudinal distance. The averaged values observed for the inter-bubble
distances also presented a clear latitudinal gradient varying from 920 km at
the Equator to 640 km at 30∘ S. The latitudinal gradient in the
inter-bubble distances seems to be related to the difference in the zonal
drift velocity of the EPB from the Equator to middle latitudes and to the
difference in the westward movement of the terminator. On several occasions,
the distances reached more than 2000 km. Inter-bubble distances greater than
1000 km have not been reported in the literature. Keywords. Ionosphere (equatorial ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities) – meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (thermospheric dynamics)
Occurrences of equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs) and medium-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances (MSTIDs) were studied using GPS satellite data-based total electron content mapping, ionograms, and ...630 nm all-sky airglow images observed over the South American continent during the period of 2014–2015. In many cases, we observed a close relationship between the inter-bubble distance and the horizontal wavelength of the MSTIDs. The MSTIDs followed by EPBs occurred primarily in the afternoon to evening period under strong tropospheric convective activities (cold fronts and/or intertropical convergence zones). The close relationship between EPBs and MSTIDs suggests that MSTIDs could be one of the seeding sources of EPBs.
Abstract
Ameerega trivittata is a widely distributed dendrobatid species with colour polymorphism for which only the diploid number, nucleolar organizer regions (NORs) and heterochromatic pattern are ...known. Here, we investigated the existence of cytogenetic structure in A. trivittata populations with different morphotypes. Four morphotypes and their geographical distributions were defined. All the individuals have 24 chromosomes and a similar heterochromatic pattern, the same location of telomeric regions and 5S rDNA. The NOR site was coincident with the 18S rDNA in pair 9, but some individuals presented an additional site in one of the homologues of pair 11. The highest variation was found in the microsatellite distribution patterns. Comparing the cytogenetic characters of the individuals, two groups were detected: (1) Tabatinga (morphotype B) and Benjamin Constant (morphotype A), and (2) Presidente Figueiredo and Tefé (morphotype C). The cytogenetic data appear to be correlated to the structure pattern of the morphotypes, and corroborate the dispersal routes proposed in the literature. This is the first study of population cytogenetics for the group. Our results provide a series of cytogenetic characters for A. trivittata and for Dendrobatidae for the first time and highlight the importance of considering cytogenetics in population research.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Biribá (
Jacq.) is a fruit tree domesticated in Amazonia and has polyploid populations. The species presents ample phenotypic variation in fruit characteristics, including weight (100-4,000 g) and ...differences in carpel protrusions. Two cytotypes are recorded in the literature (2
= 28, 42) and genome size records are divergent (2C = 4.77, 5.42 and 6.00 pg). To decipher the role of polyploidy in the domestication of
, we examined the relationships among phenotypic variation, chromosome number and genome size, and which came first, polyploidization or domestication.
We performed chromosome counts of
from central and western Brazilian Amazonia, and estimated genome size by flow cytometry. We performed phylogenetic reconstruction with publicly available data using a Bayesian framework, time divergence analysis and reconstructed the ancestral chromosome number for the genus
and for
.
We observed that variation in fruit phenotypes is not associated with variation in chromosome number and genome size. The most recent common ancestor of
is inferred to be polyploid and diverged before domestication.
We conclude that, when domesticated,
was already polyploid and we suggest that human selection is the main evolutionary force behind fruit size and fruit morphological variation in
.
Abstract Objective We previously reported a case series of acute pancreatitis (AP) and macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) in childhood (cSLE) patients; however, there are no data regarding the ...comparison of AP and MAS in large populations of cSLE and adult SLE (aSLE). Methods A study included 362 cSLE and 1830 aSLE patients. MAS was diagnosed according to preliminary diagnostic guidelines and AP according to the presence of abdominal pain or vomiting associated to an increase of pancreatic enzymes and/or pancreatic radiological abnormalities. Demographic data, clinical features, SLEDAI-2K, SLICC/ACR-DI, and treatment were assessed. Results Age in MAS patients was significantly lower compared with those without this complication 15 (8.8–55) vs. 33.5 (10.2–45.7) years, p = 0.007. The frequencies of fever (94% vs. 37%, p = 0.001), leucopenia (82% vs. 19%, p = 0.0001), thrombocytopenia (65% vs. 19%, p = 0.013), hypertriglyceridemia (87% vs. 42%, p = 0.037), and hyperferritinemia (93% vs. 37%, p = 0.011) were also more frequently observed in AP patients with MAS compared in AP patients without MAS. Fever and hyperferritinemia concomitantly were more frequent in the former group (86% vs. 12%, p = 0.0015). Higher and significant frequency of AP in cSLE compared to aSLE patients 12/362 (3.3%) vs. 20/1830 (1.1%), p = 0.003, with similar AP duration 22 (6–60) vs. 15 (4–90) days, p = 0.534. MAS (85% vs. 30%, p = 0.003) and death by MAS complication (31% vs. 0%, p = 0.017) were significantly higher in children compared with aSLE. Conclusions This study provides novel data demonstrating that MAS occur in the majority of cSLE with AP with a higher mortality compared to aSLE. In addition, we identified in AP patients, a cluster of MAS clinical and laboratorial parameters more associated with this complication.
Using data collected by the GNSS dual-frequency receivers network, de-trended TEC maps were generated to identify and characterize the medium-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances (MSTIDs) over ...the South American equatorial region (latitude: 0∘ to 15∘ S and longitude: 30∘ to 55∘ W) during solar cycle 24 (from January 2014 to December 2019). A total of 712 MSTIDs were observed during quiet geomagnetic conditions. The Frequency of occurrence of MSTID is high during the solar maximum and low in the minimum phase. This might be due to the solar cycle dependence of gravity wave activity in the lower atmosphere and gravity wave propagation conditions in the thermosphere. The predominant daytime MSTIDs, representing 80% of the total observations, occurred in winter (June-August season in the southern hemisphere) with the secondary peak in the equinox; while the evening time MSTIDs, representing 18% of the entire events, occurred in summer (December to February season) and equinox (March to May and September to November), and the remaining 2% of the MSTIDs were observed during nighttime. The seasonal variation of the MSTID events was attributed to the source mechanisms generating them, the wind filtering and dissipation effects, and the local time dependency. The horizontal wavelengths of the MSTIDs were mostly concentrated between 500 and 800 km, with the mean value of 667 ± 131 km. The observed periods ranged from 30 to 45 min with the mean value of 36 ± 7 min. The observed horizontal phase speeds were distributed around 200 to 400 m/s, with the corresponding mean of 301 ± 75 m/s. The MSTIDs in the winter solstice and equinoctial months preferentially propagated northeastward and northwestward. Meanwhile, during the summer solstice, they propagated in all directions. The anisotropy of the propagation direction might be due to several reasons: the wind and dissipative filtering effects, ion drag effects, the primary source region, and the presence of the secondary or tertiary gravity waves in the thermosphere. Atmospheric gravity waves from strong convective sources might be the primary precursor for the observed equatorial MSTIDs. In all seasons, we noted that the MSTIDs propagating southeastward were probably excited by the likely gravity waves generated by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ).
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