Wave overtopping at near-vertical seawalls: Influence of foreshore evolution during storms

This work presents the results of an investigation on how wave overtopping at a near-vertical seawall at the back of a sandy foreshore is influenced by sequences of erosive storms. The experiments were carried out in the Large Wave Flume (GWK) at Leibniz University, Hannover (Germany). The tested layout consisted of a near-vertical 10/1 seawall and a sandy foreshore with an initial 1/15 slope. Three sequences of idealised erosive storms were simulated. Within each storm both the incident wave conditions and still water level were varied in time to represent high and low tide conditions. Each sequence started from a 1/15 configuration and the beach was not restored in between storms. The measurements included waves, beach profile, wave overtopping volumes. The profile of the beach was measured after each sea state tested. Wave overtopping at each stage of the tested storms was significantly influenced by bed changes. This was linked to the measured evolution of the beach. Measurements showed that a barred profile developed quickly at the start of each sequence, and scour developed at the toe of the structure during high water level conditions, while accretion or partial backfilling developed during low water level conditions. Due to these processes, the position of a sea state in the tested sequence is shown to be an important factor in determining the wave overtopping volume. Remarkably, when a weaker idealised storm followed a more energetic one, nearly the same level of overtopping was recorded. This is explained by the foreshore erosion, leading to increased water depths and wave heights at the toe of the structure. This finding allows to quantify and to explain the variability of wave overtopping in storms following one another at intervals shorter than the recovery time of the foreshore

Sindbad: A new operational service for a safer leisure and boating navigation

The SINDBAD- Leisure and Boating Safety Navigation - project goal is the development of an advanced operational service to support navigation in a specific area. The first prototype covers the Ligurian Sea (a very busy touristic area in the North Mediterranean Sea) It develops an ICT Service Infrastructure to provide innovative intelligent automation functions and to develop customized services, accessible by your mobile device, for conducting a boat and avoiding any kind of risk ensuring the best degree of comfort

The scavenging chemokine receptor ACKR2 has a significant impact on acute mortality rate and early lesion development after traumatic brain injury

The atypical chemokine receptor ACKR2 promotes resolution of acute inflammation by operating as a scavenger receptor for inflammatory CC chemokines in several experimental models of inflammatory disorders, however its role in the brain remains unclear. Based on our previous reports of increased expression of inflammatory chemokines and their corresponding receptors following traumatic brain injury (TBI), we hypothesised that ACKR2 modulates neuroinflammation following brain trauma and that its deletion exacerbates cellular inflammation and chemokine production. We demonstrate increased CCL2 and ACKR2 mRNA expression in post-mortem human brain, whereby ACKR2 mRNA levels correlated with later times post-TBI. This data is consistent with the transient upregulation of ACKR2 observed in mouse brain after closed head injury (CHI). As compared to WT animals, ACKR2-/- mice showed a higher mortality rate after CHI, while the neurological outcome in surviving mice was similar. At day 1 post-injury, ACKR2-/- mice displayed aggravated lesion volume and no differences in CCL2 expression and macrophage recruitment relative to WT mice. Reciprocal regulation of ACKR2 and CCL2 expression was explored in cultured astrocytes, which are recognized as the major source of CCL2 and also express ACKR2. ACKR2 mRNA increased as early as 2 hours after an inflammatory challenge in WT astrocytes. As expected, CCL2 expression also dramatically increased at 4 hours in WT astrocytes but was significantly lower in ACKR2-/- astrocytes, possibly indicating a co-regulation of CCL2 and ACKR2 in these cells. Conversely, in vivo, CCL2 mRNA/protein levels were increased similarly in ACKR2-/- and WT brains at 4 and 12 hours after CHI, in line with the lack of differences in cerebral macrophage recruitment and neurological recovery. In conclusion, ACKR2 is induced after TBI and has a significant impact on mortality and lesion development acutely following CHI, while its role in chemokine expression, macrophage activation, brain pathology, and neurological recovery at later time-points is minor. Concordant to evidence in multiple sclerosis experimental models, our data corroborate a distinct role for ACKR2 in cerebral inflammatory processes compared to its reported functions in peripheral tissues

Use of expert elicitation to assign weights to climate and hydrological models in climate impact studies

Various methods are available for assessing uncertainties in climate impact studies. Among such methods, model weighting by expert elicitation is a practical way to provide a weighted ensemble of models for specific real-world impacts. The aim is to decrease the influence of improbable models in the results and easing the decision-making process. In this study both climate and hydrological models are analysed, and the result of a research experiment is presented using model weighting with the participation of six climate model experts and six hydrological model experts. For the experiment, seven climate models are a priori selected from a larger EURO-CORDEX (Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment - European Domain) ensemble of climate models, and three different hydrological models are chosen for each of the three European river basins. The model weighting is based on qualitative evaluation by the experts for each of the selected models based on a training material that describes the overall model structure and literature about climate models and the performance of hydrological models for the present period. The expert elicitation process follows a three-stage approach, with two individual rounds of elicitation of probabilities and a final group consensus, where the experts are separated into two different community groups: a climate and a hydrological modeller group. The dialogue reveals that under the conditions of the study, most climate modellers prefer the equal weighting of ensemble members, whereas hydrological-impact modellers in general are more open for assigning weights to different models in a multi-model ensemble, based on model performance and model structure. Climate experts are more open to exclude models, if obviously flawed, than to put weights on selected models in a relatively small ensemble. The study shows that expert elicitation can be an efficient way to assign weights to different hydrological models and thereby reduce the uncertainty in climate impact. However, for the climate model ensemble, comprising seven models, the elicitation in the format of this study could only re-establish a uniform weight between climate models

Estudio de la expresión del receptor de vitamina D en la ontogenia del testículo y en tumores de células de Leydig: posible interacción con el sistema histaminérgico

La vitamina D (VD), un esteroide pleiotrópico, ha sido relacionada con la función reproductiva masculina, pero aún no se ha estudiado la expresión de su receptor (RVD) en el desarrollo testicular. RVD regula la expresión de componentes del sistema histaminérgico, y la histamina (HA) modula la esteroidogénesis en células de Leydig (CL). Se ha relacionado a la deficiencia de VD con múltiples patologías, entre ellas cáncer. Los tumores de células de Leydig (TCL) son los más frecuentes del intersticio testicular, y al malignizar no responden a radio/quimioterapia. VD fue descripta como tratamiento para varios tumores, pero se desconoce su aplicación en TCL. Por lo expuesto, hemos estudiado la expresión de RVD en la ontogenia de testículo de rata, evaluando su correlación con los niveles de testosterona séricos (T) y el contenido de HA; y además evaluamos la expresión de RVD en testículo humano fetal, neonatal, prepuberal, TCL e hiperplasia de CL.En testículo de rata, se observó un aumento en la expresión de RVD en CL con la edad, en línea con el incremento de T, y en contraposición con la disminución del contenido de HA, lo cual fue consistente con la reducción en los niveles de la enzima que cataliza su síntesis, HDC. Esto sugiere que la VD podría ejercer una función en el desarrollo testicular normal, ya sea en forma directa sobre las CL o mediante la regulación de la expresión de componentes del sistema histaminérgico (HDC y/o receptores de HA).Por su parte, el TCL humano presentó sobreexpresión de RVD y HDC. Considerandoque las hormonas esteroideas se encuentran aumentadas en esta patología y funcionan como factores de crecimiento, si el calcitriol pudiera modular la esteroidogénesis podría tener una aplicación terapéutica.Vitamin D (VD) is a steroid hormone traditionally related to bone health. However, several authors have associated VD with reproduction and steroidogenesis in males. The presence of VD receptor (VDR) and the enzymes involved in its activation had been reported in several cell types of the testes. Until now, nobody has studied RVD expression during testicular development. In addition, VDR in association with its coactivators or co-repressors, regulates the expression of several genes, including those related to the histaminergic system. Previously, we demonstrated that histamine (HA) can modulate steroidogenesis in Leydig cells (LC) in a concentration-dependent manner. Also, we observed a decrease in the endogenous HA content, consistent with the previously described decrease of HDC (histidine decarboxylase, the enzyme responsible of HA synthesis) levels, during LC ontogeny. Epidemiologic studies strongly suggest that a relationship exists between VD deficiency and multiple pathologies, particularly cancer. Leydig cell tumors (LCT) are rare endocrine tumors ofunknown etiology, which originate in the testicular interstitium. The incidence worldwide is 1-3% in adults and 4% in prepubertal boys, but recent publications indicate that these figures have been increasing. While usually benign, approximately 10% of LCTin adults become malignant and do not respond to chemo or radiotherapy. It is imperative to deeply investigate the biology of LCT, to identify new therapeutic targets. The potential role of calcitriol (1α,25(OH)2-vitamin-D3) in cancer treatment has been described for several types of tumors, but it remains unexplored in LCT. Thus, as a first step, it is worth evaluating VDR expression in LCT.In view of the aforecited evidence, herein we studied VDR expression during the rat testicular ontogeny, evaluating a possible correlation withserum testosterone (T) levels in blood, endogenous levels of HAand the previously described HDC expression levels. We also analized VDR expression in human testes corresponding to three different stages of development (fetal, neonatal and juvenile), in LCTand in LC hyperplasia. Methods: Rat testes of different ages (7, 21, 35, 90 y 240 days), human fetal, neonatal and pre pubertal testes, a human LCT and a human LC hyperplasia; were used for detection of VDR by immunohistochemistry.Fil: Varela, María Luisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Abiuso, Adriana María Belén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Berensztein, Esperanza Beatriz. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Pediatría "Juan P. Garrahan"; ArgentinaFil: Besio Moreno, Marcos Alberto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Belgorosky, Alicia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Pediatría "Juan P. Garrahan"; ArgentinaFil: Pignataro, Omar Pedro. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Knoblovits, Pablo. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Suárez, Sebastián. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Costanzo, P. R.. Hospital Italiano; ArgentinaFil: Mondillo, Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; Argentin

Sc65-Null Mice Provide Evidence for a Novel Endoplasmic Reticulum Complex Regulating Collagen Lysyl Hydroxylation

Collagen is a major component of the extracellular matrix and its integrity is essential for connective tissue and organ function. The importance of proteins involved in intracellular collagen post-translational modification, folding and transport was recently highlighted from studies on recessive forms of osteogenesis imperfecta (OI). Here we describe the critical role of SC65 (Synaptonemal Complex 65, P3H4), a leprecan-family member, as part of an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) complex with prolyl 3-hydroxylase 3. This complex affects the activity of lysyl-hydroxylase 1 potentially through interactions with the enzyme and/or cyclophilin B. Loss of Sc65 in the mouse results in instability of this complex, altered collagen lysine hydroxylation and cross-linking leading to connective tissue defects that include low bone mass and skin fragility. This is the first indication of a prolyl-hydroxylase complex in the ER controlling lysyl-hydroxylase activity during collagen synthesis

Managing Carbon Aspirations: The Influence of Corporate Climate Change Targets on Environmental Performance

Addressing climate change is among the most challenging ethical issues facing contemporary business and society. Unsustainable business activities are causing significant distributional and procedural injustices in areas such as public health and vulnerability to extreme weather events, primarily because of a distinction between primary emitters and those already experiencing the impacts of climate change. Business, as a significant contributor to climate change and beneficiary of externalizing environmental costs, has an obligation to address its environmental impacts. In this paper, we explore the role of firms’ climate change targets in shaping their emissions trends in the context of a large multi-country sample of companies. We contrast two intentions for setting emissions reductions targets: symbolic attempts to manage external stakeholder perceptions via “greenwashing” and substantive commitments to reducing environmental impacts. We argue that the attributes of firms’ climate change targets (their extent, form, and time horizon) are diagnostic of firms’ underlying intentions. Consistent with our hypotheses, while we find no overall effect of setting climate change targets on emissions, we show that targets characterized by a commitment to more ambitious emissions reductions, a longer target time frame, and absolute reductions in emissions are associated with significant reductions in firms’ emissions. Our evidence suggests the need for vigilance among policy-makers and environmental campaigners regarding the underlying intentions that accompany environmental management practices and shows that these can to some extent be diagnosed analytically