The global extent and distribution of forest trees is central to our understanding of the terrestrial biosphere. We provide the first spatially continuous map of forest tree density at a global ...scale. This map reveals that the global number of trees is approximately 3.04 trillion, an order of magnitude higher than the previous estimate. Of these trees, approximately 1.39 trillion exist in tropical and subtropical forests, with 0.74 trillion in boreal regions and 0.61 trillion in temperate regions. Biome-level trends in tree density demonstrate the importance of climate and topography in controlling local tree densities at finer scales, as well as the overwhelming effect of humans across most of the world. Based on our projected tree densities, we estimate that over 15 billion trees are cut down each year, and the global number of trees has fallen by approximately 46% since the start of human civilization.
Greenhouse trace gases in deadwood Covey, K. R.; de Mesquita, C. P. Bueno; Oberle, B. ...
Biogeochemistry,
11/2016, Letnik:
130, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Deadwood, long recognized as playing an important role in storing carbon and releasing it as CO₂ in forest ecosystems, is more recently drawing attention for its potential role in the cycling of ...other greenhouse trace gases. Across three Northeastern and Central US forests, mean methane (CH₄) concentrations in deadwood were 23 times atmospheric levels (43.0 µL L⁻¹ ± 12.3; mean ± SE), indicating a lower bound, mean radial wood surface area flux of ~ 6 × 10⁻⁴ µmol CH₄ m⁻² s⁻¹. Site, decay class, log diameter, and species were all highly significant predictors of CH₄ abundance in deadwood, and diameter and decay class interacted as important controls limiting CH₄ concentrations in the smallest and most decayed logs. Nitrous oxide (N₂O) concentrations were negatively correlated with CH₄ (r² = –0.20, p < 0.001) and on average ~ 25 % lower than ambient (276.9 nL L⁻¹ ± 2.9; mean ± SE), indicating net consumption of nitrous oxide. Oxygen (O₂) concentrations were uniformly near anaerobic (355.8 µL L⁻¹ ± 1.2; mean ± SE), and CO₂ was elevated from atmospheric (9336.9 µL L⁻¹ ± 600.6; mean ± SE). Most notably, our observations that CH₄ concentrations were highest in the least decayed wood, may suggest that methanogenesis is not fuelled by structural wood decomposition but rather by consumption of more labile nonstructural carbohydrates.
High levels of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are propagating deaths due to neonatal and paediatric infections globally. This is of particular concern in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, where ...healthcare resources are constrained and access to newer agents to treat multidrug-resistant pathogens is limited.
To assess the coverage provided by commonly prescribed empiric antibiotic regimens for children in low- and middle-income countries in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, we built a weighted incidence syndromic combination antibiogram (WISCA), parameterised using data obtained from a systematic review of published literature incorporating WHO-defined SEARO and WPRO regions in Ovid MEDLINE, EMBASE, Global Health and PubMed. Susceptibility data for bacterial pathogens were extracted to provide coverage estimates for pre-specified antibiotics (aminopenicillins, gentamicin, third-generation cephalosporins and carbapenems), reported at the regional level.
6648 bacterial isolates from 11 countries across 86 papers were included in the Bayesian WISCA model, which weighted bacterial incidence and antimicrobial susceptibility of relevant isolates. Coverage provided by aminopenicillins in neonatal sepsis/meningitis was 26% (80% credible interval: 16–49) whilst gentamicin coverage was 45% (29–62). Third-generation cephalosporin coverage was only 29% (16–49) in neonatal sepsis/meningitis, 51% (38–64) in paediatric sepsis and 65% (51–77) in paediatric meningitis. Carbapenems were estimated to provide the highest coverage: 81% (65–90) in neonatal sepsis/meningitis, 83% (72–90) in paediatric sepsis and 79% (62–91) in paediatric meningitis.
These findings reveal alarmingly high rates of resistance to commonly prescribed empirical therapies for neonatal and paediatric sepsis and meningitis in the Asia–Pacific region.
This research was funded in whole, or in part, by the Wellcome Trust 220211. For the purpose of Open Access, the author has applied a CC BY public copyright licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission. PCMW is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator Grant. NHMRC had no involvement in the design or conduct of the research.
We conducted a randomized comparison of hydroxyurea with anagrelide in the treatment of essential thrombocythemia.
A total of 809 patients with essential thrombocythemia who were at high risk for ...vascular events received low-dose aspirin plus either anagrelide or hydroxyurea. The composite primary end point was the actuarial risk of arterial thrombosis (myocardial infarction, unstable angina, cerebrovascular accident, transient ischemic attack, or peripheral arterial thrombosis), venous thrombosis (deep-vein thrombosis, splanchnic-vein thrombosis, or pulmonary embolism), serious hemorrhage, or death from thrombotic or hemorrhagic causes.
After a median follow-up of 39 months, patients in the anagrelide group were significantly more likely than those in the hydroxyurea group to have reached the primary end point (odds ratio, 1.57; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.04 to 2.37; P=0.03). As compared with hydroxyurea plus aspirin, anagrelide plus aspirin was associated with increased rates of arterial thrombosis (P=0.004), serious hemorrhage (P=0.008), and transformation to myelofibrosis (P=0.01) but with a decreased rate of venous thromboembolism (P=0.006). Patients receiving anagrelide were more likely to withdraw from their assigned treatment (P<0.001). Equivalent long-term control of the platelet count was achieved in both groups.
Hydroxyurea plus low-dose aspirin is superior to anagrelide plus low-dose aspirin for patients with essential thrombocythemia at high risk for vascular events.
Transcriptional codes initiated during brain development are ultimately realized in adulthood as distinct cell types performing specialized roles in behavior. Focusing on the mouse external globus ...pallidus (GPe), we demonstrate that the potential contributions of two GABAergic GPe cell types to voluntary action are fated from early life to be distinct. Prototypic GPe neurons derive from the medial ganglionic eminence of the embryonic subpallium and express the transcription factor Nkx21. These neurons fire at high rates during alert rest, and encode movements through heterogeneous firing rate changes, with many neurons decreasing their activity. In contrast, arkypallidal GPe neurons originate from lateral/caudal ganglionic eminences, express the transcription factor FoxP2, fire at low rates during rest, and encode movements with robust increases in firing. We conclude that developmental diversity positions prototypic and arkypallidal neurons to fulfil distinct roles in behavior via their disparate regulation of GABA release onto different basal ganglia targets.
Insight into clinical response to platinum-based chemotherapy (PBC) in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Matched tumor and nontumor lung tissues from PBC-treated NSCLC patients (four nonresponders ...and four responders) and tumor tissue from an independent test set (four nonresponders and four responders), were profiled using microarrays. Lysosomal protease inhibitors SerpinB3 and cystatin C were highly correlated with clinical response and were further evaluated by immunohistochemistry in PBC-treated patients (36 prechemotherapy and 13 postchemotherapy). Investigation of the pathogenic and prognostic significance of SerpinB3 was performed in 251 primary tumors, with 64 regional lymph node pairs, from chemotherapy-naïve NSCLC patients using immunohistochemistry.
Bioinformatic analyses of gene expression in the training set identified a gene set (n = 17) that separated all patients in the training and test sets (n = 16) according to response in hierarchical clustering. Transcriptome profiling revealed that SerpinB3 mRNA was highly correlated with degree of response (r = -0.978; P < .0001) and was a clear outlier (nonresponders:responders > 50-fold). SerpinB3 protein expression was correlated with clinical response in PBC-treated NSCLC patients (P = .045). Expression of SerpinB3 and cystatin C, relative to the target, protease cathepsin B, was independently predictive of response (odds ratio, 17.8; 95% CI, 2.0 to 162.4; P = .01), with an accuracy of 72%. High SerpinB3 expression levels, invariably associated with chemoresistance, had contrasting prognostic impact in untreated squamous cell carcinomas (hazard ratio HR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.18 to 0.93) or adenocarcinomas (HR, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.03 to 4.72).
This provides the first comprehensive molecular characterization of clinical responsiveness to PBC in NSCLC and reveals the predictive and prognostic impact of two lysosomal protease inhibitors, potentially representing novel targets for NSCLC therapeutics.
Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is the most common cause of premature death from malignant disease in western countries. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying NSCLC ...etiology, pathogenesis, and therapeutics will lead to improved clinical outcomes. Recent technological advances in gene expression profiling (in particular, with cDNA and oligonucleotide microarrays) allow the simultaneous analysis of the expression of thousands of genes. In this review, the technology of global gene expression profiling is discussed, and the progress made thus far with it in NSCLC is reviewed. A new molecular classification of NSCLC has been developed, which has provided important insights into etiology and pathogenesis. Other studies have found potential biomarkers for NSCLC that may be of use in diagnosis, screening, and assessing the effectiveness of therapy. Finally, advances have been made in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of NSCLC progression and the molecular mechanisms of action of currently used cytotoxic drugs. This may facilitate the improvement of current therapeutics and the identification of novel targets. Taken together, these advances hold the promise of an improved understanding of the molecular biology of NSCLC and its treatment, which in turn will lead to improved outcomes for this deadly disease.
The deleterious effects of stereotyping on individual and group outcomes have prompted a search for solutions. One approach has been to increase awareness of the prevalence of stereotyping in the ...hope of motivating individuals to resist natural inclinations. However, it could be that this strategy creates a norm for stereotyping, which paradoxically undermines desired effects. The present research demonstrates that individuals who received a high prevalence of stereotyping message expressed more stereotypes than those who received a low prevalence of stereotyping message (Studies 1a, 1b, 1c, and 2) or no message (Study 2). Furthermore, working professionals who received a high prevalence of stereotyping message were less willing to work with an individual who violated stereotypical norms than those who received no message, a low prevalence of stereotyping message, or a high prevalence of counter-stereotyping effort message (Study 3). Also, in a competitive task, individuals who received a high prevalence of stereotyping message treated their opponents in more stereotype-consistent ways than those who received a low prevalence of stereotyping message or those who received a high prevalence of counter-stereotyping effort message (Study 4).
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