Long-Term Band Encounters of Rehabilitated North American Eagles

Between 1973 and 2020, 122 Golden Eagles and 115 Bald Eagles submitted to veterinary medical rehabilitation were banded and released upon recovery in three western states. Adults of both species comprised the most commonly banded age class of rehabilitated (rehab) eagles. Bald Eagles admitted for toxins spent less time in rehabilitation than for those admitted for collision trauma. Encounter (band read for any reason) data from banded eagles provided by the Bird Banding Laboratory (BBL) were analyzed and fitted to appropriate functions in an attempt to describe underlying distributions inherent in the data. Up to March 2020, 28 (12.2%) rehab eagles had been encountered. Encounter rate was 7.4% for rehab Golden Eagles and 16.5% for rehab Bald Eagles, slightly different than those reported by BBL overall (8.0%, 12.2%, respectively). All Golden Eagles were recovered (encountered dead) but 26.3% of Bald Eagles were encountered alive. Days in rehabilitation were not different between species or between Bald Eagles encountered dead or alive. Sex ratio of encountered eagles was not different from ratio of banded eagles of either species. Median time between release and encounter for Golden Eagles was 1.75 yr and 1.42 yr for Bald Eagles. Median distance from banding to encounter site for Golden Eagles was 7.5 km and 115.7 km for Bald Eagles. Number of encounters per year was not related to number of rehab eagles banded that year or for any year previous. Encounters of live Bald Eagles > 30 yr old are discussed. Rehab Golden Eagles may have originated predominantly from western Canada and Alaska while Bald Eagles may have been a mix of a local, non-latitudinal migratory population and seasonal latitudinal migrants. Small sample sizes and lack of precise encounter data prevents utility of rehab eagle encounters to contribute to demographic vital rate estimates needed for effective management of either species. Banding rehab eagles may not justify the manpower investment by BBL required to manage data from banders that band rehab eagles exclusively. Falconry training may be warranted to increase survival potential of rehab Golden Eagles. If recent trends continue, increased rehabilitation effort focused on Golden Eagles may be warranted

Design and Fabrication of Small Vertical-Take-Off-Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

Modern UAVs available in the market have well-developed to cater to the countless field of application. UAVs have their own limitations in terms of flight range and manoeuvrability. The traditional fixed-wing UAVs can fly for long distance but require runways or wide-open spaces for take-off and landing. On the other hand, the more trending multirotor UAVs are extremely manoeuvrable but cannot be used for long-distance flights because of their slower speeds and relatively higher consumption of energy. This study proposed the implementation of hybrid VTOL UAV which has the manoeuvring advantage of a multirotor UAV while having the ability to travel fast to reach a further distance. The design methodology and fabrication method are discussed extensively which would be followed by a number of flight tests to prove the concept. The proposed UAV would be equipped with quadcopter motors and a horizontal thrust motor for vertical and horizontal flight modes respectively

Impact of eave and roof pitch on cross ventilation for an isolated building with sawtooth roof

An eave refers to an extension attached to the building roof to protect the interior space from direct solar radiation and improve the performance on cross ventilation. In this study, the impact of eave inclination angle and roof pitch of an isolated sawtooth roof building on cross ventilation were investigated. The eave configurations at either windward or leeward openings were included. 3D steady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equation in combination with the Shear-Stress Transport model (SST k-ω model) was used for the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. Grid sensitivity study was carried out and the performance of cross ventilation was evaluated based on the non-dimensional velocity magnitude, spatial distribution of pressure coefficient as well as the ventilation rate of the building. For the simulation model with 55° roof pitch, it is observed that a region with high velocity magnitude formed on top of the leeward eave due to the higher roof pitch and presence of the leeward eave. Results also indicated that the building model with 90° leeward eave and 55° roof pitch has the highest increment in ventilation rate which is 7.16%. On the other hand, the building model with 90° windward eave has the highest pressure coefficient because more blockage of airflow is caused by a steeper roof as the roof pitch of the building increases. Furthermore, the building model with 90° leeward eave shows a larger region with negative pressure at the leeward façade indicating higher airflow leaving the leeward opening. Therefore, the airflow behavior and characteristic are both dependent on the roof pitch and eave inclination angle for a naturally ventilated building

Renal neuroendocrine control of desiccation and cold tolerance by Drosophila suzukii

Background: Neuropeptides are central to the regulation of physiological, and behavioural processes in insects, directly impacting cold and desiccation survival. However, little is known about the control mechanisms governing these responses in D. suzukii. The close phylogenetic relationship of D. suzukii with D. melanogaster allows, through genomic and functional studies, an insight into the mechanisms directing stress tolerance in D. suzukii. Results: Capa, Leucokinin, DH44 and DH31 neuropeptides demonstrate a high level of conservation between D. suzukii and D. melanogaster with respect to peptide sequences, neuronal expression, receptor localisation, and diuretic function in the Malpighian tubules. Despite D. suzukii’s ability to populate cold environments, they proved sensitive to both cold and desiccation. Furthermore, in D. suzukii, Capa acts as a desiccation-and cold stress-responsive gene, while DH44 gene expression is increased only after desiccation exposure, and the LK gene after nonlethal cold stress recovery. Conclusion: This study provides a comparative investigation into stress tolerance mediation by neuroendocrine signalling in two Drosophila species, providing evidence that similar signalling pathways control fluid secretion in the Malpighian tubules. Identifying processes governing specific environmental stresses affecting D. suzukii could lead to the development of targeted integrated management strategies to control insect pest populations

Regulation of Protein Interactions by <i>M</i>ps <i>O</i>ne <i>B</i>inder (MOB1) Phosphorylation.

MOB1 is a multifunctional protein best characterized for its integrative role in regulating Hippo and NDR pathway signaling in metazoans and the Mitotic Exit Network in yeast. Human MOB1 binds both the upstream kinases MST1 and MST2 and the downstream AGC group kinases LATS1, LATS2, NDR1, and NDR2. Binding of MOB1 to MST1 and MST2 is mediated by its phosphopeptide-binding infrastructure, the specificity of which matches the phosphorylation consensus of MST1 and MST2. On the other hand, binding of MOB1 to the LATS and NDR kinases is mediated by a distinct interaction surface on MOB1. By assembling both upstream and downstream kinases into a single complex, MOB1 facilitates the activation of the latter by the former through a trans-phosphorylation event. Binding of MOB1 to its upstream partners also renders MOB1 a substrate, which serves to differentially regulate its two protein interaction activities (at least in vitro). Our previous interaction proteomics analysis revealed that beyond associating with MST1 (and MST2), MOB1A and MOB1B can associate in a phosphorylation-dependent manner with at least two other signaling complexes, one containing the Rho guanine exchange factors (DOCK6-8) and the other containing the serine/threonine phosphatase PP6. Whether these complexes are recruited through the same mode of interaction as MST1 and MST2 remains unknown. Here, through a comprehensive set of biochemical, biophysical, mutational and structural studies, we quantitatively assess how phosphorylation of MOB1A regulates its interaction with both MST kinases and LATS/NDR family kinases in vitro Using interaction proteomics, we validate the significance of our in vitro studies and also discover that the phosphorylation-dependent recruitment of PP6 phosphatase and Rho guanine exchange factor protein complexes differ in key respects from that elucidated for MST1 and MST2. Together our studies confirm and extend previous work to delineate the intricate regulatory steps in key signaling pathways

The therapeutic potential of the filarial nematode-derived immunodulator, ES-62 in inflammatory disease

The dramatic recent rise in the incidence of allergic or autoimmune inflammatory diseases in the West has been proposed to reflect the lack of appropriate priming of the immune response by infectious agents such as parasitic worms during childhood. Consistent with this, there is increasing evidence supporting an inverse relationship between worm infection and T helper type 1/17 (Th1/17)-based inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis. Perhaps more surprisingly, given that such worms often induce strong Th2-type immune responses, there also appears to be an inverse correlation between parasite load and atopy. These findings therefore suggest that the co-evolution of helminths with hosts, which has resulted in the ability of worms to modulate inflammatory responses to promote parasite survival, has also produced the benefit of protecting the host from pathological lesions arising from aggressive proinflammatory responses to infection or, indeed, aberrant inflammatory responses underlying autoimmune and allergic disorders. By focusing upon the properties of the filarial nematode-derived immunomodulatory molecule, ES-62, in this review we shall discuss the potential of exploiting the immunomodulatory products of parasitic worms to identify and develop novel therapeutics for inflammation

The helminth product, ES-62, protects against airway inflammation by resetting the Th cell phenotype

We previously demonstrated inhibition of ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic airway hyper-responsiveness in the mouse using ES-62, a phosphorylcholine-containing glycoprotein secreted by the filarial nematode, Acanthocheilonema viteae. This inhibition correlated with ES-62-induced mast cell desensitisation, although the degree to which this reflected direct targeting of mast cells remained unclear as suppression of the Th2 phenotype of the inflammatory response, as measured by eosinophilia and IL-4 levels in the lungs, was also observed. We now show that inhibition of the lung Th2 phenotype is reflected in ex vivo analyses of draining lymph node recall cultures and accompanied by a decrease in the serum levels of total and OVA-specific IgE. Moreover, ES-62 also suppresses the lung infiltration by neutrophils that is associated with severe asthma and is generally refractory to conventional anti-inflammatory therapies, including steroids. Protection against Th2-associated airway inflammation does not reflect induction of regulatory T cell (Treg) responses (there is no increased IL-10 or Foxp3 expression) but rather a switch in polarisation towards increased T-bet expression and IFNγ production. This ES-62-driven switch in the Th1/Th2 balance is accompanied by decreased IL-17 responses, a finding in line with reports that IFNγ and IL-17 are counter-regulatory. Consistent with ES-62 mediating its effects via IFNγ-mediated suppression of pathogenic Th2/Th17 responses, we found that neutralising anti-IFNγ antibodies blocked protection against airway inflammation in terms of pro-inflammatory cell infiltration, particularly by neutrophils and lung pathology. Collectively, these studies indicate that ES-62, or more likely small molecule analogues, could have therapeutic potential in asthma, in particular for those subtypes of patients (e.g. smokers, steroid-resistant) who are refractory to current treatments

Structure and proposed mechanism of L-α-glycerophosphate oxidase from Mycoplasma pneumoniae

The formation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) by the FAD-dependent α-glycerophosphate oxidase (GlpO), is important for the pathogenesis of Streptococcus pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae. The structurally known GlpO from Streptococcus sp. (SspGlpO) is similar to the pneumococcal protein (SpGlpO) and provides a guide for drug design against that target. However, M. pneumoniae GlpO (MpGlpO), having <20% sequence identity with structurally known GlpOs, appears to represent a second type of GlpO we designate as Type II GlpOs. Here, the recombinant His-tagged MpGlpO structure is described at ~2.5 Å resolution, solved by molecular replacement using as a search model the Bordetella pertussis protein 3253 (Bp3253) a protein of unknown function solved by structural genomics efforts. Recombinant MpGlpO is an active oxidase with a turnover number of ~580 min⁻¹ while Bp3253 showed no GlpO activity. No substantial differences exist between the oxidized and dithionite-reduced MpGlpO structures. Although, no liganded structures were determined, a comparison with the tartrate-bound Bp3253 structure and consideration of residue conservation patterns guided the construction of a model for α-glycerophosphate (Glp) recognition and turnover by MpGlpO. The predicted binding mode also appears relevant for the type I GlpOs (such as SspGlpO) despite differences in substrate recognition residues, and it implicates a histidine conserved in type I and II Glp oxidases and dehydrogenases as the catalytic acid/base. This work provides a solid foundation for guiding further studies of the mitochondrial Glp dehydrogenases as well as for continued studies of M. pneumoniae and S. pneumoniae glycerol metabolism and the development of novel therapeutics targeting MpGlpO and SpGlpO.Keywords: drug design, flavoenzyme, protein evolution, GlpA, hydride transfe

The relationship between external knee moments and muscle co-activation in subjects with medial knee osteoarthritis

Purpose: External knee moments are reliable to measure knee load but it does not take into account muscle activity. Considering that muscle co-activation increases compressive forces at the knee joint, identifying relationships between muscle co-activations and knee joint load would complement the investigation of the knee loading in subjects with knee osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study was to identify relationships between muscle coactivation and external knee moments during walking in subjects with medial knee osteoarthritis. Methods: 19 controls (11 males, aged 56.6 ±5, and BMI 25.2 ± 3.3) and 25 subjects with medial knee osteoarthritis (12 males, aged 57.3 ± 5.3, and BMI 28.2 ± 4) were included in this study. Knee adduction and flexion moments, and co-activation (ratios and sums of quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius) were assessed during walking and compared between groups. The relationship between knee moments and co-activation was investigated in both groups. Findings: subjects with knee osteoarthritis presented a moderate and strong correlation between co-activation (ratios and sums) and knee moments. Interpretation: Muscle co-activation should be used to measure the contribution of quadriceps, hamstring, and gastrocnemius on knee loading. This information would cooperate to develop a more comprehensive approach of knee loading in this population

The effectiveness of tourism development in social cultural approach in Sabah

The generation of the national economy also lists the tourism industry as one of the sectors that need to be taken into consideration, primarily through social-cultural that has its characteristics to attract foreign tourists to visit the state of Sabah. This research study was conducted to investigate and evaluate the effectiveness of tourism development on social-cultural in Sabah. This research uses a quantitative approach, where questionnaires are the main instrument in collecting data in Sabah. The questionnaire format’s structure is divided into two, namely, part A (focused on the demographic profile) and part B (concentrate on the cultural-social approach in tourism development in Sabah). The study sample was a total of 74 respondents, and the questionnaire was distributed randomly in the tourist focus area of Kota Kinabalu. The analysis used is descriptive and correlational. The findings of the study indicate that the majority of cultural variables and social variables are centered on a positive curve (or towards the right), where most respondents think that local government programs and activities help a lot in understanding the cultural-social importance of the tourism sector. In addition, the uniqueness and privilege of cultural-social tourism, such as through clothing, food, wedding events, dance, etc., can play a significant role in the development of tourism. In conclusion, cultural social tourism should be the main theme not only for the generation of the national economy but also crucial in the preservation and conservation of the continuity of Sabah's local cultural-social tourism characteristics, which should be preserved in their originality forever rather than being outdated by the era of modernization