Tropicalization is a term used to describe the transformation of temperate ecosystems by poleward-moving tropical organisms in response to warming temperatures. In North America, decreases in the ...frequency and intensity of extreme winter cold events are expected to allow the poleward range expansion of many cold-sensitive tropical organisms, sometimes at the expense of temperate organisms. Although ecologists have long noted the critical ecological role of winter cold temperature extremes in tropical–temperate transition zones, the ecological effects of extreme cold events have been understudied, and the influence of warming winter temperatures has too often been left out of climate change vulnerability assessments. Here, we examine the influence of extreme cold events on the northward range limits of a diverse group of tropical organisms, including terrestrial plants, coastal wetland plants, coastal fishes, sea turtles, terrestrial reptiles, amphibians, manatees, and insects. For these organisms, extreme cold events can lead to major physiological damage or landscape-scale mass mortality. Conversely, the absence of extreme cold events can foster population growth, range expansion, and ecological regime shifts. We discuss the effects of warming winters on species and ecosystems in tropical–temperate transition zones. In the 21st century, climate change-induced decreases in the frequency and intensity of extreme cold events are expected to facilitate the poleward range expansion of many tropical species. Our review highlights critical knowledge gaps for advancing understanding of the ecological implications of the tropicalization of temperate ecosystems in North America.
Prenatal testosterone may have a powerful masculinizing effect on postnatal physical characteristics. However, no study has directly tested this hypothesis. Here, we report a 20-year follow-up study ...that measured testosterone concentrations from the umbilical cord blood of 97 male and 86 female newborns, and procured three-dimensional facial images on these participants in adulthood (range: 21–24 years). Twenty-three Euclidean and geodesic distances were measured from the facial images and an algorithm identified a set of six distances that most effectively distinguished adult males from females. From these distances, a ‘gender score’ was calculated for each face, indicating the degree of masculinity or femininity. Higher cord testosterone levels were associated with masculinized facial features when males and females were analysed together (n = 183; r = −0.59), as well as when males (n = 86; r = −0.55) and females (n = 97; r = −0.48) were examined separately (p-values < 0.001). The relationships remained significant and substantial after adjusting for potentially confounding variables. Adult circulating testosterone concentrations were available for males but showed no statistically significant relationship with gendered facial morphology (n = 85, r = 0.01, p = 0.93). This study provides the first direct evidence of a link between prenatal testosterone exposure and human facial structure.
In this study, 1219 HIV-uninfected, heterosexual adults in Botswana were randomly assigned to tenofovir–emtricitabine (TDF–FTC) or placebo. The TDF–FTC group had a lower incidence of HIV infection ...but increased rates of side effects, including a significant loss of bone density.
Biomedical strategies to prevent sexual transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) remain limited.
1
In animal models, preexposure prophylaxis with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) or with the combination of TDF and emtricitabine (TDF–FTC) can prevent infections with HIV or hybrid simian–human immunodeficiency virus after vaginal or rectal challenge.
2
,
3
In humans, daily preexposure prophylaxis with TDF–FTC has been shown to reduce transmission of HIV by 44% among men who have sex with men
4
; however, the findings from studies in heterosexual populations have been mixed.
5
–
8
Botswana has the world's second highest prevalence of HIV infection, estimated in 2008 to be . . .
In contrast to abrupt changes caused by land cover conversion, subtle changes driven by a shift in the condition, structure, or other biological attributes of land often lead to minimal and slower ...alterations of the terrestrial surface. Accurate mapping and monitoring of subtle change are crucial for an early warning of long-term gradual change that may eventually result in land cover conversion. Freely accessible moderate-resolution datasets such as the Landsat archive have great potential to characterize subtle change by capturing low-magnitude spectral changes in long-term observations. However, past studies have reported limited success in accurately extracting subtle changes from satellite-based time series analysis. In this study, we introduce a supervised framework named ‘PIDS’ to detect subtle forest disturbance from a comprehensive Landsat data archive by leveraging disturbance-based calibration sites. PIDS consists of four components: (1) Parameter optimization; (2) Index selection; (3) Dynamic stratified monitoring; and (4) Spatial consideration. PIDS was applied to map the early stage of bark beetle infestations (i.e., a lower per-pixel fraction of trees cover that show visual signs of infestation), which are a typical example of subtle change in conifer forests. Landsat Analysis Ready Data were used as the time series inputs for mapping mountain pine beetle and spruce beetle disturbance between 2001 and 2019 in Colorado, USA. PIDS-detection map assessment showed that the overall performance of PIDS (namely ‘F1 score’) was 0.86 for mountain pine beetle and 0.73 for spruce beetle, making a substantial improvement (> 0.3) compared to other approaches/products including COntinuous monitoring of Land Disturbance, LandTrendr, and the National Land Cover Database forest disturbance product. A sub-pixel analysis of tree canopy mortality percentage was performed by linking classified high-resolution (0.3- and 1-m) aerial imagery and 30-m PIDS-detection maps. Results show that PIDS typically detects mountain pine beetle infestation when ≥56% of a Landsat pixel is occupied by red-stage canopy mortality (one year after initial infestation), and spruce beetle infestation when ≥55% is occupied by gray-stage mortality (two years after initial infestation). This study addresses an important methodological goal pertinent to the utility of event-based reference samples for detecting subtle forest change, which could be potentially applied to other types of subtle land change.
•Develop a framework for detecting subtle changes from satellite time series.•Automatically calibrate model parameters and optimize spectral indices.•Assess results using multiple sources including field data and aerial survey.•Reach >0.3 F1 score improvement compared to other approaches.•Subpixel analysis for detected beetle stage using high-resolution imagery.
The way in which socioeconomic status (SES) moderates the etiology of reading attainment has been explored many times, with past work often finding that genetic influences are suppressed under ...conditions of socioeconomic deprivation and more fully realized under conditions of socioeconomic advantage: a gene-SES interaction. Additionally, past work has pointed toward the presence of gene-location interactions, with the relative influence of genes and environment varying across geographic regions of the same country/state.
This study investigates the extent to which SES and geographical location interact to moderate the genetic and environmental components of reading attainment. Utilizing data from 2,135 twin pairs in Florida (mean age 13.82 years, range 10.71-17.77), the study operationalized reading attainment as reading comprehension scores from a statewide test and SES as household income. We applied a spatial twin analysis procedure to investigate how twin genetic and environmental estimates vary by geographic location. We then expanded this analysis to explore how the moderating role of SES on said genetic and environmental influences also varied by geographic location.
A gene-SES interaction was found, with heritability of reading being suppressed in lower- (23%) versus higher-SES homes (78%). The magnitude of the moderating parameters were not consistent by location, however, and ranged from -0.10 to 0.10 for the moderating effect on genetic influences, and from -0.30 to 0.05 for the moderating effect on environmental influences. For smaller areas and those with less socioeconomic variability, the magnitude of the genetic moderating parameter was high, giving rise to more fully realized genetic influences on reading there.
SES significantly influences reading variability. However, a child's home location matters in both the overall etiology and how strongly SES moderates said etiologies. These results point toward the presence of multiple significant environmental factors that simultaneously, and inseparably, influence the underlying etiology of reading attainment.
Objective
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure is associated with photosensitivity, rashes, and flares in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, it is not known whether UV exposure increases ...risk of developing SLE. We examined UV exposure and SLE risk in a large prospective cohort.
Methods
The Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) enrolled 121,700 US female nurses in 1976; in 1989, 116,429 nurses were enrolled in NHS II. Biennial questionnaires collected lifestyle and medical data. Self‐reported incident SLE by American College of Rheumatology classification criteria was confirmed by medical record review. Ambient UV exposure was estimated by linking geocoded residential addresses with a spatiotemporal UV exposure model. Cox models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) across tertiles of time‐varying cumulative average UV. We examined SLE risk overall and stratified by anti‐Ro/La antibodies and by cutaneous manifestations from 1976 through 2014 (NHS)/2015 (NHS II), adjusting for confounders.
Results
With 6,054,665 person‐years of exposure, we identified 297 incident SLE cases; the mean ± SD age at diagnosis was 49.8 ± 10.6 years. At diagnosis, 16.8% of women had +anti‐Ro/La, and 80% had either +anti‐Ro/La or ≥1 cutaneous manifestation. Compared with the lowest UV exposure tertile, risk of overall SLE was increased, but not significantly (HR 1.28 95%CI 0.96–1.70). Women in the highest tertile had increased risk of malar rash (HR 1.62 95% CI 1.04–2.52).
Conclusion
Cumulative UV exposure was not associated with SLE risk. Higher UV exposure, however, was associated with increased risk of malar rash at presentation. UV exposure may trigger SLE onset with malar rash among susceptible women.
Polycomb group (PcG) proteins maintain transcriptional repression during development, likely by creating repressive chromatin states. The Extra Sex Combs (ESC) and Enhancer of Zeste E(Z) proteins are ...partners in an essential PcG complex, but its full composition and biochemical activities are not known. A SET domain in E(Z) suggests this complex might methylate histones. We purified an ESC-E(Z) complex from
Drosophila embryos and found four major subunits: ESC, E(Z), NURF-55, and the PcG repressor, SU(Z)12. A recombinant complex reconstituted from these four subunits methylates lysine-27 of histone H3. Mutations in the E(Z) SET domain disrupt methyltransferase activity in vitro and HOX gene repression in vivo. These results identify E(Z) as a PcG protein with enzymatic activity and implicate histone methylation in PcG-mediated silencing.
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Currently, 1 in 25 children born in Australia are conceived through ARTs such as IVF and ICSI. Worldwide over 8 million children have been born after ART. There is evidence that ...these children are at an increased risk of congenital malformations, preterm birth, low birth weight and neonatal morbidity. However, studies on long-term health outcomes of offspring conceived after ART are lacking. Atopic disorders, such as asthma, atopic dermatitis and various allergies are increasingly common within society, and concerns have been raised that ART increases the risk of atopy amongst offspring.
OBJECTIVE AND RATIONALE
The aim of this study was to systematically summarise and quantify the risk of atopic disorders in offspring conceived with ART compared to those conceived without ART.
SEARCH METHODS
A systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines. Several systematic searches were performed in the following international databases: Medline, Embase, Cinahl, PsychINFO, AMED, Global Health and ISI Web of Science. Search terms utilised were all terms pertaining to ART, IVF, ICSI, asthma, atopic dermatitis and allergies. The search period was 1978–2021. Included observational studies stated a primary outcome of asthma or allergies in offspring conceived after ART, with a comparison group conceived without ART. Individual studies were scored on quality and risk of bias, using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale (NOS).
OUTCOMES
There were 26 studies which met the inclusion criteria; of these, 24 studies investigated asthma in offspring conceived after ART. While 10 studies, including the two largest population-based studies, reported a significantly increased risk of asthma in offspring conceived after ART (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) range: 1.20–2.38), 14 smaller cohort studies found no difference (aOR range 0.70–1.27). In the meta-analysis of the 14 highest-quality studies (NOS ≥ 7), a modest yet significantly increased risk of asthma was demonstrated in offspring conceived after ART risk ratio (RR) 1.28 (1.08–1.51). Although heterogeneity in these 14 studies was high (I2 = 85%), the removal of outliers and high weight studies significantly reduced heterogeneity (I2 = 0% and I2 = 34% respectively) while still demonstrating a significantly increased risk RR 1.19 (1.10–1.28) and RR 1.31 (1.03–1.65), respectively. The increased asthma risk was also observed in most subgroup and sensitivity analyses. The allergy rates were not increased in offspring conceived after ART in 9 of 12 studies (aOR range 0.60–1.30). In summary, the findings of this systematic review and meta-analysis suggest a trend towards a significantly increased risk of asthma, but not allergies, in offspring conceived after ART. There was no evidence of publication bias in the asthma studies and minimal evidence of publication bias in the allergy studies (both P > 0.05).
WIDER IMPLICATIONS
Asthma brings considerable burden to the quality of life of individuals and to society. Hence, it is of great importance to untangle potential causal pathways. Although ART use is common, knowledge about its long-term health effects is required to provide evidence-based advice to couples considering ART, and to be vigilant for any potential adverse health effects on offspring conceived after ART.
Background Examination of at least 16 lymph nodes (LNs) has been traditionally recommended during gastric adenocarcinoma resection to optimize staging, but the impact of this strategy on survival is ...uncertain. Because recent randomized trials have demonstrated a therapeutic benefit from extended lymphadenectomy, we sought to investigate the impact of the number of LNs removed on prognosis after gastric adenocarcinoma resection. Study Design We analyzed patients who underwent gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma from 2000 to 2012, at 7 US academic institutions. Patients with M1 disease or R2 resections were excluded. Disease-specific survival (DSS) was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using log-rank and Cox regression analyses. Results Of 742 patients, 257 (35%) had 7 to 15 LNs removed and 485 (65%) had ≥16 LNs removed. Disease-specific survival was not significantly longer after removal of ≥16 vs 7 to 15 LNs (10-year survival, 55% vs 47%, respectively; p = 0.53) for the entire cohort, but was significantly improved in the subset of patients with stage IA to IIIA (10-year survival, 74% vs 57%, respectively; p = 0.018) or N0-2 disease (72% vs 55%, respectively; p = 0.023). Similarly, for patients who were classified to more likely be “true N0-2,” based on frequentist analysis incorporating both the number of positive and of total LNs removed, the hazard ratio for disease-related death (adjusted for T stage, R status, grade, receipt of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy, and institution) significantly decreased as the number of LNs removed increased. Conclusions The number of LNs removed during gastrectomy for adenocarcinoma appears itself to have prognostic implications for long-term survival.
PDF
