The geographic scale of genetic differentiation in the feral pigeon (Columba livia): implications for management

Understanding the genetic connectivity among populations of spreading and problematic species is important to determine the spatial scale at which management actions need to be conducted. The feral pigeon (Columba livia) is considered to be a pest or an invasive species in many cities around the world, leading to frequent attempts to control its populations. In the present study, we used microsatellites markers to investigate the relationship between genetic structure and geographic distance among feral pigeons from different locations, and the patterns of genetic differentiation at two geographic scales, within and between urbanised areas. A Mantel’s test revealed that the levels of genetic differentiation increased significantly with the geographic distance separating the locations. We also found that neighbouring locations within urban areas are usually not genetically differentiated, suggesting that all of the feral pigeons in an urban zone constitute a single management unit. Our results suggest that in large, interconnected cities control by culling at the scale of a neighbourhood, in addition of generating ethical issues, will not be effective to decrease pigeon population sizes

From functional diversity to human well-being: A conceptual framework for agroecosystem sustainability

[EN] CONTEXT: Agricultural intensification contributes to global food security and well-being by supplying the food demand of a growing human population. However, ongoing land-use change and intensification seriously affect the abundance, diversity and distribution of species, besides many other impacts, thereby threatening the functioning of ecosystems worldwide. Despite the accumulating evidence that the current agricultural model is unsustainable, we are far from understanding the consequences of functional diversity loss for functioning and ecosystem service supply and the potential long-term threats to food security and human well-being. OBJECTIVE: In this review, we propose a conceptual framework to understand the relationships between functional diversity and human well-being that also considers agroecosystem health. To this end, we identify the most commonly assumed relationships linking functional diversity to regulating and provisioning agroecosystem services and their importance for human well-being, emphasising the most serious knowledge gaps in the in-dividual pathways of the conceptual framework. METHODS: A consortium formed by an international panel of experts from different disciplines including functional diversity, ecosystem services and human health compiled 275 articles. Members of the consortium proposed literature to exemplify each specific aspect of the conceptual framework in the text, in accordance with his/her field of expertise. The guideline for all experts was to focus mostly in current literature (38% of the references are from the last 5 years and 66% from the last decade), with special interest in reviews and synthesis articles (42% of the references), as well as meta-analyses and global studies (10% of the references). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The factors that influence agroecosystem health are extremely complex, involving both services and disservices related to land-use management and environmental conditions. The global human population needs sustainable and resilient agroecosystems and a concerted effort is needed to fundamentally redesign agricultural practices to feed the growing human population without further jeopardising the quality of life for future generations. We highlight the potential effects of land-use change and ecological intensification on the functional diversity of plant and animal communities, and the resulting consequences for ecosystem services and ultimately human health. SIGNIFICANCE: The resulting conceptual model is developed for researchers as well as policy makers high- lighting the need for a holistic approach to understand diversity impacts on human well-being. Finally, we document a major knowledge gap due to the lack of any studies focusing on the full pathway from diversity to human well-being.S

Identifying Future Study Designs and Indicators for Somatic Health Associated with Diets of Cohorts Living in Eco-Regions: Findings from the INSUM Expert Workshop

Diets, but also overall food environments, comprise a variety of significant factors with direct and indirect impacts on human health. Eco-Regions are geographical areas with a territorial approach to rural development, utilizing organic food and farming practices, and principles and promoting sustainable communities and food systems. However, so far, little attention has been given to quantifying aspects of the health of citizens living in these sustainable transition territories. The project “Indicators for Assessment of Health Effects of Consumption of Sustainable, Organic School Meals in Eco-Regions” (INSUM) aims to identify and discuss research approaches and indicators that could be applied to effectively measure the somatic, mental, and social health dimensions of citizens in Eco-Regions, linked to the intake of organic foods in their diets. In this paper, we focus on the somatic (physical) health dimension. A two-day workshop was held to discuss suitable methodology with an interdisciplinary, international group of experts. The results showed the limitations of commonly used tools for measuring dietary intake (e.g., relying on the memory of participants), and nutritional biomarkers (e.g., variations in correlations with specific intakes) for research understanding dietary intake and the health effects of diets. To investigate the complexity of this issue, the most suitable approach seems to be the combination of traditional markers of physical and mental health alongside emerging indicators such as the microbiome, nutrigenomics, metabolomics, or inflammatory biomarkers. Using new, digital, non-invasive, and wearable technologies to monitor indicators could complement future research. We conclude that future studies should adopt systemic, multidisciplinary approaches by combining not only indicators of somatic and mental health and social wellbeing (MHSW) but also considering the potential benefits of organic diets for health as well as aspects of sustainability connected to food environments

Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation for Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome associated with COVID-19: An Emulated Target Trial Analysis.

RATIONALE: Whether COVID patients may benefit from extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) compared with conventional invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) remains unknown. OBJECTIVES: To estimate the effect of ECMO on 90-Day mortality vs IMV only Methods: Among 4,244 critically ill adult patients with COVID-19 included in a multicenter cohort study, we emulated a target trial comparing the treatment strategies of initiating ECMO vs. no ECMO within 7 days of IMV in patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (PaO2/FiO2 <80 or PaCO2 ≥60 mmHg). We controlled for confounding using a multivariable Cox model based on predefined variables. MAIN RESULTS: 1,235 patients met the full eligibility criteria for the emulated trial, among whom 164 patients initiated ECMO. The ECMO strategy had a higher survival probability at Day-7 from the onset of eligibility criteria (87% vs 83%, risk difference: 4%, 95% CI 0;9%) which decreased during follow-up (survival at Day-90: 63% vs 65%, risk difference: -2%, 95% CI -10;5%). However, ECMO was associated with higher survival when performed in high-volume ECMO centers or in regions where a specific ECMO network organization was set up to handle high demand, and when initiated within the first 4 days of MV and in profoundly hypoxemic patients. CONCLUSIONS: In an emulated trial based on a nationwide COVID-19 cohort, we found differential survival over time of an ECMO compared with a no-ECMO strategy. However, ECMO was consistently associated with better outcomes when performed in high-volume centers and in regions with ECMO capacities specifically organized to handle high demand. This article is open access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

En torno a las Soledades: el abad de Rute y los lienzos de Flandes

Francisco Fernández de Córdoba, abad de Rute, en el Examen del Antídoto defiende las Soledades de Góngora al tiempo que las compara con la pintura flamenca de paisaje o «lienzos de Flandes». Pese a no ser el único ingenio secentista en aplicar un tipo de discurso pictórico a la poesía, en cambio resulta el primer autor conocido en bosquejar el aspecto paisajístico del gran poema gongorino. ¿Qué cuadros tenía en mente Fernández de Córdoba cuando hablaba de «lienzos de Flandes»? ¿Cómo se aplica el término al paisaje gongorino? Intentaremos identificar los cuadros flamencos que pudo conocer el abad de Rute, limitándonos a la producción anterior a 1617, fecha de redacción de la apología y centrándonos en las colecciones españolas y también italianas, ya que el abad de Rute residió en España y en Italia. A través de dicho cotejo se intentan precisar los parecidos del poema con la pintura flamenca y también mostrar el carácter personal de la respuesta de Góngora a un problema artístico, crucial por aquel entonces, el de la representación de la Naturaleza.Dans son Examen de l’Antidote, Francisco Fernández de Córdoba, abbé de Rute, défend les Solitudes de Góngora et, ce faisant, il les compare à la peinture flamande de paysage ou « toiles des Flandres ». Bien qu’il ne soit pas l’unique esprit du xviie à appliquer un discours pictural à la poésie, il est, en revanche, le premier auteur connu à proposer une ébauche de l’aspect paysager du grand poème de Góngora. Quels tableaux Francisco Fernández de Córdoba avait-il à l’esprit lorsqu’il parlait de « toiles des Flandres » ? Comment ce terme s’applique-t-il au paysage gongorin ? Nous tenterons d’identifier les tableaux flamands que l’abbé de Rute a pu connaître, en nous limitant à la production antérieure à 1617, date de rédaction de l’apologie, et en nous bornant aux collections espagnoles et italiennes, dans la mesure où l’abbé de Rute résida en Espagne et en Italie. À travers cette comparaison, nous cherchons à préciser les points communs du poème avec la peinture flamande et à dégager aussi le caractère personnel de la réponse de Góngora à un problème artistique, crucial à cette époque, celui de la représentation de la Nature.In his Examen del Antídoto in which he praises the Soledades of Góngora, Francisco Fernández de Córdoba, the abbot of Rute, compares this baroque poem with Flemish landscape painting or «canvas of Flanders». If he is not the only one who applied a pictorial speech to the poetry, he is however the first one, from what we know, who qualified the landscape aspect of the Soledades. Which paintings did this humanist of the seventeenth century have in mind when he talked about «the canvas of Flanders»? How is this term applied to the landscape of Góngora? We will try to identify which Flemish paintings the abbot of Rute could know, by limiting ourselves to works prior to 1617, date of writing of his praise, and focusing on Spanish and also Italian collections, since the abbot of Rute actually lived in Spain and Italy. The comparison will specify the similarities of the poem with Flemish painting but also show Góngora’s personal answer to the artistic problem, crucial at that time: the representation of nature

A Semi-throughput Procedure for Assaying Plant NADP-malate Dehydrogenase Activity Using a Plate Reader

Chloroplast NADP-dependent malate dehydrogenase (NADP-MDH) is a redox regulated enzyme playing an important role in plant redox homeostasis. Leaf NADP-MDH activation level is considered a proxy for the chloroplast redox status. NADP-MDH enzyme activity is commonly assayed spectrophotometrically by following oxaloacetate-dependent NADPH oxidation at 340 nm. We have developed a plate-adapted protocol to monitor NADP-MDH activity allowing faster data production and lower reagent consumption compared to the classic cuvette format of a spectrophotometer. We provide a detailed procedure to assay NADP-MDH activity and measure the enzyme activation state in purified protein preparations or in leaf extracts. This protocol is provided together with a semi-automatized data analysis procedure using an R script