Gain control from beyond the classical receptive field in primate primary visual cortex

Gain control is a salient feature of information processing throughout the visual system. Heeger (1991, 1992) described a mechanism that could underpin gain control in primary visual cortex (VI). According to this model, a neuron's response is normalized by dividing its output by the sum of a population of neurons, which are selective for orientations covering a broad range. Gain control in this scheme is manifested as a change in the semisaturation constant (contrast gain) of a VI neuron. Here we examine how flanking and annular gratings of the same or orthogonal orientation to that preferred by a neuron presented beyond the receptive field modulate gain in V1 neurons in anesthetized marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). To characterize how gain was modulated by surround stimuli, the Michaelis-Menten equation was fitted to response versus contrast functions obtained under each stimulus condition. The modulation of gain by surround stimuli was modelled best as a divisive reduction in response gain. Response gain varied with the orientation of surround stimuli, but was reduced most when the orientation of a large annular grating beyond the classical receptive field matched the preferred orientation of neurons. The strength of surround suppression did not vary significantly with retinal eccentricity or laminar distribution. In the mannoset, as in macaques (Angelucci et al., 2002a,b), gain control over the sort of distances reported here (up to 10 deg) may be mediated by feedback from extrastriate areas

A database of whole-body action videos for the study of action, emotion, and untrustworthiness

We present a database of high-definition (HD) videos for the study of traits inferred from whole-body actions. Twenty-nine actors (19 female) were filmed performing different actions—walking, picking up a box, putting down a box, jumping, sitting down, and standing and acting—while conveying different traits, including four emotions (anger, fear, happiness, sadness), untrustworthiness, and neutral, where no specific trait was conveyed. For the actions conveying the four emotions and untrustworthiness, the actions were filmed multiple times, with the actor conveying the traits with different levels of intensity. In total, we made 2,783 action videos (in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional format), each lasting 7 s with a frame rate of 50 fps. All videos were filmed in a green-screen studio in order to isolate the action information from all contextual detail and to provide a flexible stimulus set for future use. In order to validate the traits conveyed by each action, we asked participants to rate each of the actions corresponding to the trait that the actor portrayed in the two-dimensional videos. To provide a useful database of stimuli of multiple actions conveying multiple traits, each video name contains information on the gender of the actor, the action executed, the trait conveyed, and the rating of its perceived intensity. All videos can be downloaded free at the following address: http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~neb506/databases.html. We discuss potential uses for the database in the analysis of the perception of whole-body actions

Evaluation of the Nimbin Integrated Services Project

This report is an evaluation of a Nurse Practitioner-led integrated service for mental health and drug and alcohol clients, in a small town in rural NSW.Dept of Premier and Cabinet, NS

“Stewards of the future: accompanying the rising tide of young voices by setting youth-inclusive research agendas in sustainability research”

Background From the worldwide youth-led climate strikes of 2018–2019 to the student-initiated austerity protests in Chile in 2019, it is undeniable that young people have been protagonists in pressuring for social change towards greater sustainability in recent years. This piece reflects on youth as agents of social-ecological change, and what researchers can learn from the rise in youth-led social movements demanding action in the face of global sustainability challenges. The study of sustainability problems like climate change and biodiversity loss, intrinsically requires consideration of inter-generational equity. However, despite 50% of the global population being under 30 years old, youth are often not included explicitly as actors in environmental social sciences and sustainability-related research. Here we discuss why explicitly considering young people as distinct actors during the research process is important, as it allows researchers to engage in just and inclusive work whilst at the same time accounting for important agents of change in complex social-ecological systems. Results As a framework for our inquiry we present the themes which emerged during a series of international meetings and forums on sustainability challenges and youth in 2019, a year characterized by world-wide youth mobilization. Our briefing spans the United Nations Youth 2019 Climate Action Summit, the post-2020 meetings organized by the youth branch of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD), the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Youth forums and the results from the Global Shapers Survey of the World Economic Forum. Conclusions We argue that if researchers wish to facilitate youth-inclusive evidence-based decision making, research agendas must address knowledge gaps highlighted by institutional efforts to incorporate youth concerns within global sustainability policy, a recommendation that is even more relevant in the light of the COVID-19 crisis. We draw on the themes which emerged in our analysis of international youth meetings to provide recommendations for research agendas which account both for young actors as both passive and active components of social-ecological change and we propose a more inclusive and holistic study of coupled natural-human systems.publishedVersio

Airway events in obese vs. non-obese elective surgical patients: a cross-sectional observational study

Obesity is an increasingly prevalent comorbidity within the UK population. The aim of this study was to determine the proportion of obese patients in an elective surgical population. The second aim was to determine the choice of airway equipment and incidence of airway events in obese vs. non-obese patients. We conducted a cross-sectional observational study over two 24-h periods in March 2018 across 39 hospitals in the greater London area. Data were collected regarding 1874 patients. The incidence of obesity was 32% in the study population compared with 26% in the general UK population (p < 0.0001). Minor airway events were defined as: desaturation to Sp O2 < 90%; failed mask ventilation; supraglottic airway device problem; aspiration; airway trauma and difficult intubation; or recognised oesophageal intubation. Major airway events were defined as: unrecognised oesophageal intubation; a 'cannot intubate cannot oxygenate' emergency; the need for unplanned front-of-neck airway; cardiac arrest; or unplanned intensive care unit admission due to an airway event. In total, 89 minor and two major airway events were recorded. Obese patients were more likely to experience a minor airway event (RR 2.39, 95%CI 1.60-3.57), the most common being desaturation (Sp O2 < 90%). The use of a supraglottic airway device in obese vs. non-obese patients was associated with increased airway events (RR 3.46 [1.88-6.40]). Tracheal intubation vs. supraglottic airway device use increased with obesity class but was not associated with a decrease in airway events (RR 0.90 [0.53-1.55]). Our data suggest that obesity is more common in the elective surgical vs. general population and minor airway events are more common in obese vs. non-obese elective patients

BK Virus in Kidney Transplant Recipients: The Influence of Immunosuppression

The incidence of BK virus infection in kidney transplant recipients has increased over recent decades, coincident with the use of more potent immunosuppression. More importantly, posttransplant BK virus replication has emerged as an important cause of graft damage and subsequent graft loss. Immunosuppression has been accepted as a major risk for BK virus replication. However, the specific contribution of individual immunosuppressive medications to this risk has not been well established. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the recent literature on the influence of the various immunosuppressant drugs and drug combinations on posttransplant BK virus replication. Evidence supporting the various immunosuppression reduction strategies utilised in the management of BK virus will also be briefly discussed

Evidence linking life-form to a major shift in diversification rate in Crassula

Premise Plants have evolved different ecological strategies in response to environmental challenges, and a higher lability of such strategies is more common in plant groups that adapt to various niches. Crassula (Crassulaceae), occurring in varied mesic to xeric habitats, exhibits a remarkable diversity of life-forms. However, whether any particular life-form trait has shaped species diversification in Crassula has remained unexplored. This study aims to investigate diversification patterns within Crassula and identify potential links to its life-form evolution. Methods A phylogenetic tree of 140 Crassula taxa was reconstructed using plastid and nuclear loci and dated based on the nuclear DNA information only. We reconstructed ancestral life-form characters to estimate the evolutionary trends of ecophysiological change, and subsequently estimated net diversification rates. Multiple diversification models were applied to examine the association between certain life-forms and net diversification rates. Results Our findings confirm a radiation within Crassula in the last 10 million years. A configuration of net diversification rate shifts was detected, which coincides with the emergence of a speciose lineage during the late Miocene. The results of ancestral state reconstruction demonstrate a high lability of life-forms in Crassula, and the trait-dependent diversification analyses revealed that the increased diversification is strongly associated with a compact growth form. Conclusions Transitions between life-forms in Crassula seem to have driven adaptation and shaped diversification of this genus across various habitats. The diversification patterns we inferred are similar to those observed in other major succulent lineages, with the most-speciose clades originating in the late Miocene

S100A4 Elevation Empowers Expression of Metastasis Effector Molecules in Human Breast Cancer.

Many human glandular cancers metastasize along nerve tracts, but the mechanisms involved are generally poorly understood. The calcium-binding protein S100A4 is expressed at elevated levels in human cancers, where it has been linked to increased invasion and metastasis. Here we report genetic studies in a Drosophila model to define S100A4 effector functions that mediate metastatic dissemination of mutant Ras-induced tumors in the developing nervous system. In flies overexpressing mutant RasVal12 and S100A4, there was a significant increase in activation of the stress kinase JNK and production of the matrix metalloproteinase MMP1. Genetic or chemical blockades of JNK and MMP1 suppressed metastatic dissemination associated with S100A4 elevation, defining required signaling pathway(s) for S100A4 in this setting. In clinical specimens of human breast cancer, elevated levels of the mammalian paralogs MMP2, MMP9, and MMP13 are associated with a 4- to 9-fold relative decrease in patient survival. In individual tumors, levels of MMP2 and MMP13 correlated more closely with levels of S100A4, whereas MMP9 levels correlated more closely with the S100 family member S100P. Overall, our results suggest the existence of evolutionarily conserved pathways used by S100A4 to promote metastatic dissemination, with potential prognostic and therapeutic implications for metastasis by cancers that preferentially exploit nerve tract migration routes. Cancer Res; 77(3); 1-10. ©2016 AACR