Male Mating Rate Is Constrained by Seminal Fluid Availability in Bedbugs, Cimex lectularius

Sexual selection, differences in reproductive success between individuals, continues beyond acquiring a mating partner and affects ejaculate size and composition (sperm competition). Sperm and seminal fluid have very different roles in sperm competition but both components encompass production costs for the male. Theoretical models predict that males should spend ejaculate components prudently and differently for sperm and seminal fluid but empirical evidence for independent variation of sperm number and seminal fluid volume is scarce. It is also largely unknown how sperm and seminal fluid variation affect future mating rate. In bedbugs we developed a protocol to examine the role of seminal fluids in ejaculate allocation and its effect on future male mating rate. Using age-related changes in sperm and seminal fluid volume we estimated the lowest capacity at which mating activity started. We then showed that sexually active males allocate 12% of their sperm and 19% of their seminal fluid volume per mating and predicted that males would be depleted of seminal fluid but not of sperm. We tested (and confirmed) this prediction empirically. Finally, the slightly faster replenishment of seminal fluid compared to sperm did not outweigh the faster decrease during mating. Our results suggest that male mating rate can be constrained by the availability of seminal fluids. Our protocol might be applicable to a range of other organisms. We discuss the idea that economic considerations in sexual conflict research might benefit from distinguishing between costs and benefits that are ejaculate dose-dependent and those that are frequency-dependent on the mating rate per se

Diapause affects cuticular hydrocarbon composition and mating behavior of both sexes in Drosophila montana

Environmental cues, mainly photoperiod and temperature, are known to control female adult reproductive diapause in several insect species. Diapause enhances female survival during adverse conditions and postpones progeny production to the favorable season. Male diapause (a reversible inability to inseminate receptive females) has been studied much less than female diapause. However, if the males maximized their chances to fertilize females while minimizing their energy expenditure, they would be expected to be in diapause at the same time as females. We investigated Drosophila montana male mating behavior under short‐day conditions that induce diapause in females and found the males to be reproductively inactive. We also found that males reared under long‐day conditions (reproducing individuals) court reproducing postdiapause females, but not diapausing ones. The diapausing flies of both sexes had more long‐chain and less short‐chain hydrocarbons on their cuticle than the reproducing ones, which presumably increase their survival under stressful conditions, but at the same time decrease their attractiveness. Our study shows that the mating behavior of females and males is well coordinated during and after overwintering and it also gives support to the dual role of insect cuticular hydrocarbons in adaptation and mate choice.peerReviewe

The Microstructural Effects on the Mechanical and Thermal Properties of Pulsed Electric Current Sintered Cu-Al2O3 Composites

In this work, the influences of the microstructure on the mechanical and thermal properties of pulsed electric currentsintered (PECS) Cu-Al2O3 composites are investigated. The process parameters were optimized for four different grades ofcomposite powders to obtain dense samples (98-99.6%T.D.). Higher hardness and better thermal stability were attained tothe samples compacted from commercial internally oxidized (IO) powders than to the compacts made from the chemicallysynthesised experimental powders. This difference was attributed to the distribution and size of Al2O3-particles in the twotypes of composites. The CTE values of all the compacts were between 17 and 20 x 10-6K-1 (370-770 K). The results showthat PECS can be used to produce dense high quality Cu-Al2O3 composites.Peer reviewe

Linked Data-Driven Smart Spaces

In this paper, we present an approach to exploit Linked Data in Smart Spaces, doing more than just using RDF to represent informa- tion. In particular, we rely on knowledge stored in DBpedia1, a dataset in the Web of Data. We also provide a platform to implement such an approach and a eTourism use case, both developed in collaboration with a mobile operator. Finally, we provide also a performance evaluation of the main component of the platform

Postcopulatory mechanisms of inbreeding avoidance in the island endemic hihi (Notiomystis cincta)

Avoiding genetic incompatibility resulting from inbreeding is thought to be one of the main drivers of mate choice, promiscuity, and sexual conflict. Inbreeding avoidance has been found across a wide range of taxa and is predicted to be adaptive when the costs of inbreeding outweigh the benefits. This study tests the inbreeding avoidance hypothesis at the precopulatory and postcopulatory stages in a natural population of the promiscuous endemic bird, the hihi. This species has high costs associated with inbreeding as it depresses offspring survival. We generate alternative predictions to explain the observed fertilization patterns based on the existence or absence of precopulatory and/or postcopulatory mechanisms of inbreeding avoidance. Nonrandom mating with respect to relatedness is found mainly at the postcopulatory stage. Interestingly, mating patterns appear opposed. There is a trend for females choosing more closely related social males than random, but postcopulatory patterns are biased toward less related extrapair males. This strategy suggests that at the precopulatory stage females may tolerate inbreeding as the costs of developing inbreeding avoidance may be high, especially in light of forced copulations, if natal dispersal is limited or if they gain inclusive fitness. However, as postcopulatory patterns are biased toward less-related individuals inclusive fitness explanations are unlikely. Postcopulatory patterns may arise if there are mechanisms such as sperm ejection or gametic compatibility such as sperm selection or biased fertility/mortality of offspring by related males. The observed patterns are likely to be an optimal compromise between the divergent selection pressures on each sex

Sää- ja ilmastotiedot sekä uudet palvelut auttavat metsäbiotaloutta sopeutumaan ilmastonmuutokseen

Ilmastonmuutoksen seurauksena metsiin kohdistuvat sään aiheuttamat riskit kasvavat, ja siksi tarvitaan tehokkaita sopeutumistoimia. Maa- ja metsätalousministeriön rahoittamassa metsätalouden sopeutumista tukevassa Säätyö-hankkeessa olemme tehneet yhteenvedon sopeutumista auttavista tietoaineistoista, kehittäneet metsätaloutta hyödyttäviä sää- ja ilmastopalveluita sekä kartoittaneet metsätalouden sää- ja ilmastopalveluiden tarvetta. Lisäksi olemme kirjanneet keskeisiä sopeutumista edistäviä jatkokehitystoimia. Säätyö-hankkeessa kehitettiin maan pintakerroksen kosteutta ja kantavuutta kuvaava palvelutuote, jossa esitetään säätietojen avulla laskettu analyysi vallitsevasta tilanteesta sekä 10 vuorokauden ennuste. Hankkeessa myös testattiin pitkien kolmen kuukauden päähän ylettyvien ennusteiden käyttökelpoisuutta. Säätyön ennustepalvelua sivuaa, hyödyntää ja täydentää toinen Ilmatieteen laitoksen ja Metsätehon yhteistyöhanke nimeltään HarvesterSeasons (https://harvesterseasons.com/) HarvesterSeasons-palvelu hyödyntää maaston kantavuusolosuhteiden arvioinnissa pitkiä, noin kuuden kuukauden päähän ulottuvia ennusteita. Itä-Suomen yliopiston Metsätieteiden osastolla kehitettiin Ilmatieteen laitoksen kanssa yhteistyössä tuulituhoriskityökalun testiversio, minkä avulla voidaan laskea puuston tuulituhoon (puiden kaatuminen) tarvittavia tuulennopeuksia. Työkalu soveltuu tällä hetkellä vain tutkijakäyttöön. Säätyö-hankkeessa testattiin myös mahdollisuutta paikantaa pahimmat tuulituhoalueet välittömästi tapahtuneen myrskyn jälkeen. Menetelmänä käytettiin sääasemilla tehtävien tuulihavaintojen alueellista interpolointia. Menetelmän avulla analysoitiin kesällä ja syksyllä 2020 metsätuhoja aiheuttaneita myrskyjä. Myrskyn jälkeisen tilannekuvan laatijat pitivät tehtyjä kartta-analyysejä havainnollisina ja hyödyllisinä. Lumen kertymää puiden oksille, voidaan mallintaa säätietojen, kuten sademäärän, lämpötilan, ilman kosteuden ja tuulen nopeuden, avulla. Säätyö-hankkeessa lumituhoriskin arviointimallia kehitetiin edelleen siten, että kertyneen lumikuorman lisäksi selittäjäksi otetiin myös puuston ominaisuudet sekä maaston korkeusvaihtelut. Tehdyn verifioinnin mukaan abioottisten tekijöiden merkitys kasvoi äärimmäisissä lumikuormaolosuhteissa (talvi 2017–2018). Tavallisina talvina puolestaan korostui bioottisten tekijöiden merkitys. Vertailun mukaan toteutuneet lumituhot pystyttiin selittämään testatulla mallilla hyvin. Hankkeessa kartoitettiin haastatteluissa ja työpajassa tietotuotteiden käyttökohteita, hyötyjä, käyttöönoton edellytyksiä ja kehitysmahdollisuuksia. Tulosten mukaan tietotuotteille ja -palveluille nähtiin monipuolisia käyttömahdollisuuksia ja käytön myötä saatavia hyötyjä. Tietotuotteiden avulla olisi mahdollista kehittää ennakoivaa metsänhoitoa, joka pienentäisi tuhoista aiheutuvia taloudellisia vahinkoja. Tietotuotteiden mahdollistama entistä ajantasaisempi käsitys korjuuolosuhteista tehostaisi hakkuu- ja korjuuoperaatioiden toteutusta ja puuvarastojen hallintaa sekä vähentäisi maasto- ja runko- ja juuristovaurioita. Selvityksen mukaan tiedon käyttöönottoon vaikuttavat etenkin ajantasaisuus ja saatavuus. Vaikka hankkeessa kehitetyistä tietotuotteista ei oltu tällä hetkellä valmiita maksamaan niin haastatteluissa tuotiin esiin kuitenkin useita tietotuotteiden kehitysehdotuksia, joiden myötä niiden kaupallistamista pidettiin mahdollisena.Climate change will increase weather induced risks to forests, and thus effective adaptation measures are needed. In Säätyö project funded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, we have summarized the data that facilitate adaptation measures, developed weather and climate services that benefit forestry, and mapped what kind of new weather and climate services are needed in forestry. In addition, we have recorded key further development needs to promote adaptation. The Säätyö project developed a service product describing the harvesting conditions of trees based on the soil moisture assessment. The output includes an analysis of the current situation and a 10-day forecast. In the project we also tested the usefulness of long forecasts beyond three months. The weather forecasting service is sidelined and supplemented by another co-operation project between the Finnish Meteorological Institute and Metsäteho called HarvesterSeasons (https://harvesterseasons.com/). The HarvesterSeasons service utilizes long-term forecasts of up to 6 months to assess terrain bearing conditions. A test version of a wind damage risk tool was developed in cooperation with the Department of Forest Sciences of the University of Eastern Finland and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. It can be used to calculate the wind speeds required in a forest area for wind damage (falling trees). It is currently only suitable for researcher use. In the Säätyö project the possibility of locating the most severe wind damage areas immediately after a storm was also tested. The method is based on the spatial interpolation of wind observations. The method was used to analyze storms that caused forest damages in the summer and fall of 2020. The produced maps were considered illustrative and useful to those responsible for compiling the situational picture. The accumulation of snow on tree branches, can be modeled using weather data such as rainfall, temperature, air humidity, and wind speed. In the Säätyö project, the snow damage risk assessment model was further developed in such a way that, in addition to the accumulated snow load amount, the characteristics of the stand and the variations in terrain height were also taken into account. According to the verification performed, the importance of abiotic factors increased under extreme snow load conditions (winter 2017-2018). In ordinary winters, the importance of biotic factors was emphasized. According to the comparison, the actual snow damage could be explained well with the tested model. In the interviews and workshop, the uses of information products, their benefits, the conditions for their introduction and development opportunities were mapped. According to the results, diverse uses and benefits of information products and services were seen. Information products would make it possible to develop proactive forest management, which would reduce the economic costs caused by wind and snow damages. A more up-to-date understanding of harvesting conditions, enabled by information products, would enhance the implementation of harvesting and harvesting operations and the management of timber stocks, as well as reduce terrain, trunk and root damage. According to the study, the introduction of information is particularly affected by the availability of timeliness. Although the interviewees were not currently willing to pay for the information products developed in the project, the interviews highlighted several suggestions for the development of information products, which could make it possible to commercialize them

Exercise for the management of Type 2 Diabetes: a review of the evidences

The aim is to critically review the more relevant evidence on the interrelationships between exercise and metabolic outcomes. The research questions addressed in the recent specific literature with the most relevant randomized controlled trials, meta-analysis and cohort studies are presented in three domains: aerobic exercise, resistance exercise, combined aerobic and resistance exercise. From this review appear that the effects of aerobic exercise are well established, and interventions with more vigorous aerobic exercise programs resulted in greater reductions in HbA1c, greater increase in VO2max and greater increase in insulin sensitivity. Considering the available evidence, it appears that resistance training could be an effective intervention to help glycemic control, especially considering that the effects of this form of intervention are comparable with what reported with aerobic exercise. Less studies have investigated whether combined resistance and aerobic training offers a synergistic and incremental effect on glycemic control; however, from the available evidences appear that combined exercise training seems to determine additional change in HbA1c that can be seen significant if compared with aerobic training alone and resistance training alone

Multicomponent, home-based resistance training for obese adults with type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled trial

Purpose: To investigate whether a home-based resistance training (RT) program that supplied high-quality equipment and qualified exercise specialists could provide benefits to obese patients with type 2 diabetes. Methods: A total of 48 obese individuals with type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned to either an RT (n=27) or a control group (n=21). Those in the RT group received a multigym and dumbbells and performed RT 3 days per week for 16 weeks at home. A qualified exercise specialist supervised training, with supervision being gradually decreased throughout the study. Primary outcome measures included strength and hemoglobin-A1C, whereas secondary outcome measures included other cardiovascular risk markers, key social-cognitive constructs and health-related quality of life. Results: Intention-to-treat analyses indicated a significant increase in upper and lower body strength for the RT group compared with controls (20–37% mean increases in the RT group). No significant reduction in A1C levels was observed. The RT group had unchanged high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in comparison to declines in the control group. Significant reductions in fasting insulin, and increases in RT-related self-efficacy and intentions, were also observed in the RT group. Conclusions: Supervised home-based RT with high-quality equipment was effective for improving strength, along with other secondary outcomes in obese patients with type 2 diabetes