Hasil untuk "Ecology"

Jewheon Kang, Sion Seo, Hojin Jang et al.

Pneumatic soft robotic devices are emerging as promising tools for assisting hand rehabilitation in individuals with post-stroke motor impairment. However, evidence regarding their immediate functional impact remains limited, particularly across different impairment levels. This study presents a pilot validation of the YAD_V2 pneumatic finger rehabilitation robot and evaluates acute changes in finger range of motion (ROM) and task performance during a single intervention session. Twenty stroke participants were categorized into two groups based on the Fugl-Mayer Hand sub score: severe impairment (FMA-Hand < 10) and mild-to-moderate impairment (FMA-Hand ≥ 10). ROM was measured using integrated bending sensors during voluntary flexion–extension before, during, and after a 10-min pneumatic actuation session. A mixed 2 × 3 repeated-measure ANOVA revealed a significant Group × Time interaction (<i>F</i>(2, 36) = 4.628, <i>p</i> = 0.016, partial <i>η</i>² = 0.205). In the severe group, ROM increased from 8.53° to 28.46° during actuation (<i>p</i> = 0.002), and partially returned to baseline afterward. In the mild–moderate group, no significant ROM changes were observed; however, cube-transfer time improved significantly (mean improvement: 0.88 s, <i>p</i> = 0.039). These findings indicate that pneumatic assistance induces distinct acute effects depending on impairment severity. This study provides preliminary evidence supporting the feasibility of the YAD_V2 robotic system and highlights the need for multi-session clinical trials to determine therapeutic efficacy.

Jyoti Chauhan, MD Prathibha, Prabha Singh et al.

Photosynthesis is crucial for sustaining life on this planet and necessary for plant growth and development. Abiotic stresses such as high and low temperatures, and excess, or deficit of water limit the crucial plant processes, thus threatening the global food security. However, recent molecular approaches allowed elucidation of the photosynthetic components/compounds and their efficiency under stress conditions. In the present scenario, these approaches are not enough to reduce the yield penalty due to the reduction in photosynthetic efficiency. Therefore, comprehensive data on plant behavior and stress crosstalk networks could assist in understanding the in-depth mechanism of photosynthesis. In recent years, information regarding crosstalk, signaling characterization of candidate genes, and responses to multiple stressors have advanced our knowledge to understand the mechanism of photosynthesis. Therefore, in this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of various studies conducted on photosynthesis under multiple abiotic stress factors that affect the photosynthetic efficiency of a plant. We also discuss the role of crosstalk signaling compounds (plant growth regulators and micro RNAs) for an in-depth understanding of the photosynthesis mechanism. Finally, based on our gathered data set, the mechanism of damage and adaptive response of photosynthesis under multiple stressors are explained to enhance the scientific community's knowledge toward boosting photosynthesis and to accelerate stress tolerance strategies for crop improvement.

Martin Hessling, Ben Sicks, Anna-Maria Gierke et al.

(1) Background: Hand hygiene with chemical disinfectants is an important measure to reduce the spread of infections, but frequent use can cause skin irritation. In recent years, it has become widely accepted that visible light can also have an antimicrobial effect, and visible light has even been applied to the disinfection of wounds. The present study aims to evaluate whether hand disinfection with visible light is a realistic alternative to chemical disinfectants. (2) Methods: Human hands were irradiated with a dose of 10 or 33 J/cm² of visible violet light (405 nm) for 3 or 10 min, respectively. The reducing effect of the visible violet light was determined by comparing the contact agar plate results of irradiated and non-irradiated hands. Comparative experiments with a conventional hand disinfecting gel were also performed. Applicable standards were consulted to evaluate skin exposure to the irradiation. (3) Results: Irradiation of the hands with 10 and 33 J/cm² resulted in an average reduction of microorganisms on the skin of 0.43 and 0.76 log-levels, respectively. These disinfection results with visible violet light are far behind those of the disinfectant gel, which achieved a reduction of 2.17 log-levels. Additionally, due to legal limits, a 3-min irradiation can only be performed five times per day and a 10-min procedure only once. (4) Conclusion: Since the irradiation doses applied up to now have not provided a substantial antimicrobial effect, and since an increase in the dose in a short time period is not arbitrarily possible without heating the hand unpleasantly, visible light of 405 nm seems rather unsuitable for repeated hand disinfection.

Hakan Çelebi, Tolga Bahadır, İsmail Şimşek et al.

All over the world, environmental engineers, environmental biologists, biochemists, and other scientists are concerned about environmental pollution. In particular, different treatment technologies and applications in terms of water and soil health have been investigated for years. Studies show that the bioprocess (biosorption, bioremediation, bioaccumulation, etc.) approach is more advantageous (economical, easy design, and environmentally friendly, etc.) than many treatment methods. Thanks to these advantages, bioprocesses have been preferred for the removal of different pollutants in the receiving environment. Effective microorganisms (EMOs) are defined as mixed cultures of advantageous and naturally occurring microorganisms that can be used as vaccine material. An EMO is a natural fermentation product that is not chemically or genetically modified in the form of a concentrated solution. An EMO consists of 10 species, including photosynthetic (<i>Rhodopseudomonas palustrus</i> and <i>Rhodobacter spaeroides</i>, etc.) and lactic acid (<i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i>, <i>Lactobacillus casei</i> and <i>Streptoccus lactis</i>, etc.) bacterial groups, yeasts (<i>Saccharomyces cerevisiae</i> and <i>Candida utilis</i>, etc.), actinomycetes, and fermenting fungi The main components of an EMO are lactic acid bacteria, yeasts, and photosynthetic bacteria. In a liquid solution, they are in harmony. This article aims to review the literature on “Effective Microorganisms (EMOs)” from different scientific databases and discuss the effectiveness of using EMOs for bioprocess.

Hania Benmebarek, Karima Kharroub

Halophiles are microorganisms that inhabit saline and hypersaline environments, requiring salinity to survive in such extreme conditions. These microorganisms are mainly researched for their biotechnological potential. This study aims to investigate the phenology of the studied strain, <i>Idiomarina loihiensis</i>, and to demonstrate its extracellular proteolytic activity, as well as the production of a protease via batch fermentation in halophilic microorganisms. Macroscopic studies revealed small colonies (≤5 mm) with a convex spherical structure, regular outline, smooth surface, and color ranging from beige to opaque cream. Protease production was investigated in high-salinity conditions with a moderately halophilic bacterium using basal media with varying nitrogen sources. This study found that the highest proteolytic activity occurred in media with tryptone and casein peptone as nitrogen sources, at pH 10, a temperature of 70 °C, and 22.5% salt concentration. The results also demonstrated that the studied protease was a thermostable enzyme.

Lisa Printz, Kirsten Jung

Urbanization is a highly disperse process, resulting in urban sprawl across landscapes. Within such landscapes, structural heterogeneity may be an important factor for maintaining biodiversity. We investigated the importance of habitat heterogeneity on bats in villages across the Schwäbische Alb, Germany, a progressively urbanized region. Bat activity and diversity were assessed using acoustic monitoring. We characterized habitat composition at the local and neighborhood scale and assessed environmental characteristics of urban density, vegetation cover and architectural features, combining satellite and ground-based measures. Our results revealed that the extent of urban areas determines the occurrence of different bat species, while local spatial, structural, and architectonic parameters at recording sites affected bat activity, feeding activity and social encounters. Larger urban areas with increased proportion of impervious surfaces and newly constructed housing areas were associated with fewer bat species and lower bat activity. Bat activity and feeding were highest in housing areas constructed between 1950-2000 and increased with higher proportions of older, rather openly structured vegetation. Our results clearly show a combined importance of environmental parameters across spatial scales, affecting habitat suitability and quality of rural urban areas for bats. This highlights that strategies for biodiversity inclusion in rural urban planning need to consider both local and neighborhood conditions to support bat diversity and vital bat activity. In particular, it exemplifies future challenges to maintain biodiversity within progressively urbanized rural landscapes, as this needs support by municipalities for maintaining space for nature in areas designated for urban development and also the consciousness by local residents for biodiversity-friendly modernizations.

Dong-ru Kang, Si-lan Dai, Zi-cheng Wang

Dynamic changes in DNA methylation regulate the expression of genes and play important roles especially in the flowering processes of higher plants. Methyl-CpG-binding domain protein could specifically recognize hypermethylated regions in the genome, thus MBD sequencing technology and CpG islands analysis of the sequences were used to identify candidate genes that were regulated by DNA methylation, in particular the flowering induction stage of Chrysanthemum lavandulifolium. MBD-seq identified 89 candidate genes which included 49 genes exhibiting changes in DNA methylation status during floral induction. Based on CpG islands analysis of the sequences, 27 candidate genes were selected that may be regulated by DNA methylation. The expression levels of 30 candidate genes and nine key genes were determined by RT-PCR and qRT-PCR during floral induction (7D), four genes (ClFT, ClMET, DFL and ClWRKY21) were similarly up-regulated. Methylation-specific PCR analysis also indicated that there were changes in the DNA methylation status in the DFL and ClWRKY21. The changes in the DNA methylation status during the induction phase of flowering may lead to changes in gene expression. In this study, a set of genes were identified that are proposed to be involved in floral induction and two key genes were identified (DFL, ClWRKY21) that were regulated by DNA methylation during the flowering process of C. lavandulifolium.

Dorothy Borowy, Christopher M. Swan

Abstract Despite a growing literature‐base devoted to document biodiversity patterns in cities, little is known about the processes that influence these patterns, and whether they are consistent over time. In particular, numerous studies have identified the capacity of cities to host a rich diversity of plant species. This trend, however, is driven primarily by introduced species, which comprise a large proportion of the urban species pool relative to natives. Using an experimental common garden study, we assessed the relative influence of local assembly processes (i.e., soil environmental filtering and competition from spontaneous urban species) on the taxonomic and functional diversity of native plant communities sampled over four seasons in 2016–2018. Taxonomic and functional diversity exhibited different responses to local processes, supporting the general conclusion that species‐ and trait‐based measures of biodiversity offer distinct insights into community assembly dynamics. Additionally, we found that neither soil nor competition from spontaneous urban species influenced taxonomic or functional composition of native species. Functional composition, however, did shift strongly over time and was driven by community‐weighted mean differences in both measured traits (maximum height, Hmax; specific leaf area, SLA; leaf chlorophyll a fluorescence, Chl a) and the relative proportions of different functional groups (legumes, annual and biennial‐perennial species, C4 grasses, and forbs). By contrast, taxonomic composition only diverged between early and late seasons. Overall, our results indicate that native species are not only capable of establishing and persisting in vacant urban habitats, they can functionally respond to local filtering pressures over time. This suggests that regional dispersal limitation may be a primary factor limiting native species in urban environments. Thus, future regreening and management plans should focus on enhancing the dispersal potential of native plant species in urban environments, in order to achieve set goals for increasing native species diversity and associated ecosystem services in cities.

Xiaochen Liu, Shuangyi Li, Shuai Wang et al.

Knowledge of the factors affecting spatial distribution of farmland soil organic carbon (SOC) contribute to a better understanding of the impact of human activities on soil, which is important for improving soil quality and mitigating climate change. Intensive production has brought about significant changes in farmland landscape pattern. However, the consequences of this change on SOC remains unclear. In this study, using 307 sampling sites of SOC in Lower Liaohe Plain, we mapped the spatial distribution of SOC by Kriging method, and investigated the relationship between topographic and climate factors and SOC, then nine landscape indexes were used as the indicator of human activity and intensity to describe the farmland landscape pattern and analyzed the relationship between landscape pattern and SOC. We observed that SOC was positively related to mean annual precipitation (MAP), negatively related to mean annual temperature (MAT). Flat terrain weakened the relationship between topographic factors and SOC. SOC was positively related to the indexes that represent the complexity of patch shape, and negatively related to indexes that represent the contagion and connectivity degree of patches, indicated that farmland landscape with high connectivity, regular shape and high contagion were not conducive to carbon sequestration. Also, stepwise regression analysis showed that MAP, MAT and DEM contributed the most to SOC variation, these factors could explain 29.3% of the variation in SOC. While added Aggregation Index (AI) could improve the explanation degree by 3.1%, and AI became the strongest factor after natural factors. This study highlights the role of landscape pattern in influencing farmland SOC. The results are useful supplement to the study of farmland SOC and may provide support for SOC sequestration through regulating and controlling landscape pattern.

Phoebe Parker‐Shames, Christopher Choi, Van Butsic et al.

Abstract The rapid expansion of cannabis agriculture in the Western United States provides a rare opportunity to study how an abrupt change in land‐use policy affects local biodiversity. There is broad speculation that cannabis production on private land is expanding and having negative effects on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, yet there exist little empirical data to evaluate this concern. In this study, we mapped and characterized outdoor cannabis production during the first season of legal recreational production (2016) in a large legacy cannabis‐producing region of Southern Oregon, Josephine County. We descriptively compared cannabis farms to all available private parcels based on proximity to rivers/streams and undeveloped land and their overlap with carnivore richness. Using publicly available satellite imagery, we found approximately 1.34 km2 (331 acres) of cannabis cultivation within Josephine County during the first season of legal recreational production. Most cannabis production areas were small (median size 414 m2), spatially clustered at all observed scales, and recently established (67% were not visible in 2013–2014 pre‐legalization). When compared with all available private parcels, cannabis was preferentially located in forested areas, undeveloped land and slightly closer to rivers. Within riparian areas, farms were slightly closer to rivers with predicted occurrence of coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). While projected carnivore richness was similar between cannabis and all private parcels, projected fisher (Pekania pennanti) occupancy was more than five times higher on cannabis farms, with a median occupancy of 0.69 (interquartile range: 0.24–0.87). Our results establish a baseline for cannabis land cover at the time of early recreational legalization and rapid expansion and can be used to predict future patterns or ecological consequences of cannabis development in other production areas. Understanding the potential ecological impact of cannabis is increasingly important as legalization expands and may also offer insights into other rural land‐use change frontiers.

Samuel G. Evans, Tim G. Holland, Jonathan W. Long et al.

Across the United States, wildfire severity and frequency are increasing, placing many properties at risk of harm or destruction. We quantify and compare how different forest management strategies designed to increase forest resilience and health reduce the number of properties at risk from wildfire, focusing on the Lake Tahoe Basin of California and Nevada. We combine landscape change simulations (including climate change, wildfire, and management effects) with scenarios of current and plausible fuel treatment activities and parcel-scale fire risk analysis. Results suggest that more aggressive fuel treatment activities that treat more area on the landscape, whether through mechanical and hand thinning or prescribed fire, dramatically lower the fire probability in the region and lead to a corresponding lower risk of property loss. We estimate that relative to recent practices of focusing management in the wildland–urban interface, more active forest management can reduce property loss risk by 45%–76%, or approximately 2600–4900 properties. The majority of this risk reduction is for single family residences, which constitute most structures in the region. Further, we find that the highest risk reduction is obtained through strategies that treat a substantially greater area than is currently treated in the region and allows for selective wildfires to burn for resource objectives outside of the wildland–urban interface. These results highlight the importance of more active forest management as an effective tool in reducing the wildfire risk to capital assets in the region.

Simron J Singh, Simran Talwar, Megha Shenoy

Global material extraction has tripled since the 1970s, with more than 100 billion tonnes of materials entering the world economy each year. Only 8.6% of this is recycled, while 61% ends up as waste and emissions that is the leading cause of global warming, and large-scale pollution of land, rivers, and oceans. This paper introduces Socio-metabolic Research (SMR) and demonstrates its relevance for ecological economics scholarship in India. SMR is a research framework for studying the biophysical stocks and flows of material and energy associated with societal production and consumption. SMR is widely conducted in Europe, US, and China. In India, it is still at an infant stage. In this paper, we review pioneering efforts of SMR in India, and make the case for advancing the field in the sub-continent. The crucial question is whether India can source materials and energy necessary for human development in a sustainable manner.

Kesley J. Gibson, Matthew K. Streich, Tara S. Topping et al.

Highly mobile apex predators such as the shortfin mako shark (mako shark; Isurus oxyrinchus) serve an important role in the marine ecosystem, and despite their declining populations and vulnerability to overexploitation, this species is frequently harvested in high abundance in both commercial and recreational fisheries. In 2017, the North Atlantic stock was deemed overfished and to be undergoing overfishing and was recently listed in CITES Appendix II. Effective management of this species can benefit from detailed information on their movements and habitat use, which is lacking, especially in the Gulf of Mexico, a potential mating and parturition ground. In this study, we used satellite telemetry to track the movements of mako sharks in the western Gulf of Mexico between 2016 and 2020. In contrast to previous studies that have primarily tagged juvenile mako sharks (&gt;80% juveniles), ∼80% of sharks tagged in this study (7 of 9) were presumed to be mature based on published size-at-maturity data. Sharks were tracked for durations ranging from 10 to 887 days (mean = 359 days; median = 239 days) with three mature individuals tracked for &gt;2 years. Mako sharks tagged in this study used more of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico than reported in previous movement studies on juveniles, suggesting potential evidence of size segregation. While one mature female remained in the Gulf of Mexico over a &gt;2-year period, predominantly on the continental shelf, two mature males demonstrated seasonal migrations ∼2,500 km from the tagging location off the Texas coast to the Caribbean Sea and northeastern United States Atlantic coast, respectively. During these migrations, mako sharks traversed at least 12 jurisdictional boundaries, which also exposed individuals to varying levels of fishing pressure and harvest regulations. Movement ecology of this species, especially for mature individuals in the western North Atlantic, has been largely unknown until recently. These data included here supplement existing information on mako shark movement ecology and potential stock structure that could help improve management of the species.

Taru Sandén, Anna Wawra, Helene Berthold et al.

Litter decomposition plays a pivotal role in the global carbon cycle, but is difficult to measure on a global scale, especially by citizen scientists. Here, citizen scientists, i.e., school students with their teachers, used the globally applied and standardized Tea Bag Index (TBI) method to collect data on litter decomposition in urban areas in Austria. They also sampled soils to investigate the linkages between litter decomposition and soil attributes. For this study, 54 sites were selected from the school experiments and assembled into a TBI dataset comprising litter decomposition rates (k), stabilization factors (S), as well as soil and environmental attributes. An extensive pre-processing procedure was applied to the dataset, including attribute selection and discretization of the decomposition rates and stabilization factors into three categories each. Data mining analyses of the TBI data helped reveal trends in litter decomposition. We generated predictive models (classification trees) that identified the soil attributes governing litter decomposition. Classification trees were developed for both of the litter decomposition parameters: decomposition rate (k) and stabilization factor (S). The main governing factor for both decomposition rate (k) and stabilization factor (S) was the sand content of the soils. The data mining models achieved an accuracy of 54.0 and 66.7% for decomposition rates and stabilization factors, respectively. The data mining results enhance our knowledge about the driving forces of litter decomposition in urban soils, which are underrepresented in soil monitoring schemes. The models are very informative for understanding and describing litter decomposition in urban settings in general. This approach may also further encourage participatory researcher-teacher-student interactions and thus help create an enabling environment for cooperation for further citizen science research in urban school settings.

Sayuri Ichikawa

E. Mahdavie Nezhad, S. Z. Hosseini, H. Maleki Nezhad et al.

In water systems, precipitation is considered as input and evaporation as the output of the system. Water availability can be estemated from the relationship between these two factors. Therefore, evapotranspiration is the most important factor after precipitation in hydrological cycle. Evapotranspiration is influenced by climatic parameters such as temperature, wind, humidity and sunshine hours. In this research, changes in PET and effective climatic parameters, influencing on PET changes including temperature, wind, humidity, and solar radiation were investigated. For this purpose, PET in 14 weather stations of Yazd province were calculated using the FAO-Penman-Monteith method. Due to the lack of sunshine hours data in some stations, regeneration of the incomplete data was done by using regression method. Due to the lack of wind speed data at some stations, their reconstruction by using data from other stations was done by applying three methods of Inverse Distance Weighted, Kriging and Cokriging. After calculating potential evapotranspiration, PET data were zoned and their monthly and annual trends tested by Mann-Kendall test. Despite occurrence of climate change and increasing of temperature in 13 stations out of the 14 stations, it is expected an increase in potential evapotranspiration in past few decades, while, there is a decreasing trend in PET. Investigating on the effective parameters in potential evapotranspiration showed that wind speed has declined in the last few decades, and despite of an increase in temperature, potential evapotranspiration rate reduces in 64.3% of the stations. General trend of evapotranspiration was -0.86 in this period, which indicates a decrease in evapotranspiration in the Yazd province.

Kürşad Özkan

M. Mutalipassi, M. Di Natale, V. Mazzella et al.

Modern research makes frequent use of animal models, that is, organisms raised and bred experimentally in order to help the understanding of biological and chemical processes affecting organisms or whole environments. The development of flexible, reprogrammable and modular systems that may help the automatic production of ‘not-easy-to-keep’ species is important for scientific purposes and for such aquaculture needs as the production of alive foods, the culture of small larvae and the test of new culture procedures. For this reason, we planned and built a programmable experimental system adaptable to the culture of various aquatic organisms, at different developmental stages. The system is based on culture cylinders contained into operational tanks connected to water conditioning tanks. A programmable central processor unit controls the operations, that is, water changes, temperature, light irradiance, the opening and closure of valves for the discharge of unused foods, water circulation and filtration and disinfection systems, according to the information received by various probes. Various devices may be set to modify water circulation and water changes to fulfil the needs of given organisms, to avoid damage of delicate structures, improve feeding performances and reduce the risk of movements over the water surface. The results obtained indicate that the system is effective in the production of shrimp larvae, being able to produce Hippolyte inermis post-larvae with low mortality as compared with the standard operation procedures followed by human operators. Therefore, the patented prototype described in the present study is a possible solution to automate and simplify the rearing of small invertebrates in the laboratory and in production plants.

Masayuki Mishima, Tsuneo Hashizume, Yu Haranosono et al.

Abstract Use of Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationships ((Q)SAR) prediction tools has been increasing since the International Council for Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) M7 guideline was issued in June 2014. The Japanese Environmental Mutagen Society and the Bacterial Mutagenicity Study Group took the initiative of the workshop on (Q)SAR in 2016 to discuss using (Q)SAR to predict mutagenicity. The aim of the workshop was to form a common understanding on the current use of (Q)SAR tools in industry and for regulatory purposes and on the process of expert judgment. This report summarizes the general session that reviewed the use of (Q)SAR tools and the case study session that discussed expert judgment.

Federici S, Galluzzi G

Given the greater vulnerability of developing countries to climate change, their paramount interest is to establish effective mitigation policies including the land use and forestry sectors as part of the post-2012 Climate Agreement. In this context, an accounting system for land use, land use change and forestry acceptable to non-Annex I Parties can arise only if critical elements in current accounting rules are removed and a solution to data uncertainties is found. Indeed, current accounting rules oppose the fundamental principles outlined in the both Convention on climate change and in the Kyoto protocol. They require accounting of only a portion of land-use activities and exclude forest management, give special provisions to exclude some net emissions from accounting, do not require the use of a reference level in quantifying net emissions and risk remunerating business as usual mitigation actions. Encouragingly, the current negotiation text contains options which, if adopted, would define an accounting system capable of responding to developing countries’ expectations. These options include the establishment of a national reference level suited to country-specific circumstances and other measures to ensure that only truly additional mitigation actions are remunerated and that all anthropogenic net emissions on managed lands are included. Finally, the opportunity of applying the principle of conservativeness in the future accounting routine is discussed, as a straightforward and effective instrument to correct uncertain estimates and therefore to reduce the risks of assigning an incorrect amount of credits and debits in this complex sector.