Cognitive performance and its relationship with postprandial metabolic changes after ingestion of different macronutrients in the morning

The effect of carbohydrate, protein and fat ingestion on simple as well as complex cognitive functions and the relationship between the respective postprandial metabolic changes and changes in cognitive performance were studied in fifteen healthy male students. Subjects were tested in three sessions, separated by 1 week, for short-term changes in blood variables, indirect calorimetry, subjective performance and different objective performance tasks using a repeated-measures counterbalanced cross-over design. Measurements were made after an overnight fast before and hourly during 3 h after test meal ingestion. Test meals consisted of either pure carbohydrates, protein or fat and were served as isoenergetic (1670 kJ) spoonable creams with similar sensory properties. Most aspects of subjective performance did not differ between test meals. For all objective tasks, however, postprandial cognitive performance was best after fat ingestion concomitant with an almost constant glucose metabolism and constant metabolic activation state measured by glucagon:insulin (G:I). In contrast, carbohydrate as well as protein ingestion resulted in lower overall cognitive performance, both together with partly marked changes (P<0.001) in glucose metabolism and metabolic activation. They also differently affected specific cognitive functions (P<0.05) in relation to their specific effect on metabolism. Carbohydrate ingestion resulted in relatively better short-term memory and accuracy of tasks concomitant with low metabolic activation, whereas protein ingestion resulted in better attention and efficiency of tasks concomitant with higher metabolic activation. Our findings support the concept that good and stable cognitive performance is related to a balanced glucose metabolism and metabolic activation stat

More exposure opportunities for promoting freshwater conservation

Freshwater ecosystems have a higher percentage of threatened and extinct species than terrestrial or marine realms, but remain under‐represented in conservation research and actions arguably as a consequence of less popularity and promotion. Cover images of conservation journals were used as a proxy of exposure and potential promotion opportunities provided for different ecosystems and species. To examine whether articles related to cover images received more attention, citations and Altmetric scores of cover‐featured articles were compared with non‐featured ones within the same host journal issue. Freshwater ecosystems (10.4%) were featured less often than marine (15.2%) or terrestrial (74.4%) ecosystems on covers of 18 conservation journals from 1997 to 2016. All 15 most featured species are from terrestrial or marine ecosystems. In addition, cover‐featured studies showed higher citations and Altmetric scores than non‐featured ones within the same host journal issue, indicating that cover‐featured articles received more attention. Further investigations are needed to examine the relationship (i.e. whether there is a true causality) between being featured on the cover, and citations and Altmetric scores received by articles, as well as potentially resulting in greater conservation efforts. Nevertheless, we believe that providing exposure opportunities is likely to better inform the public about the continuing degradation of freshwater ecosystems and its impacts on human well‐being, including economic loss and danger to public health. Journal editors can contribute by balancing their selection of featured ecosystems and species when opportunities arise. Increasing exposure opportunities for freshwater ecosystems through various channels seems a promising approach to raise public awareness and appreciation of freshwater biodiversity. Scientists can play an active role and form an alliance with journal editors, conservation organizations, and media, to increase momentum in society for fresh waters to be experienced as essential ecosystems and prevent further degradation of freshwater habitats and biodiversity loss.Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency of the European Union: Erasmus Mundus Joint Doctorate SMART http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000785Leibniz Association: Freshwater Megafauna Futures http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001664Spanish Government’s María de Maeztu excellence accreditation 2018‐2022German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)Peer Reviewe

More exposure opportunities for promoting freshwater conservation

1. Freshwater ecosystems have a higher percentage of threatened and extinct species than terrestrial or marine realms, but remain under-represented in conservation research and actions arguably as a consequence of less popularity and promotion. 2. Cover images of conservation journals were used as a proxy of exposure and potential promotion opportunities provided for different ecosystems and species. To examine whether articles related to cover images received more attention, citations and Altmetric scores of cover-featured articles were compared with non-featured ones within the same host journal issue. 3. Freshwater ecosystems (10.4%) were featured less often than marine (15.2%) or terrestrial (74.4%) ecosystems on covers of 18 conservation journals from 1997 to 2016. All 15 most featured species are from terrestrial or marine ecosystems. 4. In addition, cover-featured studies showed higher citations and Altmetric scores than non-featured ones within the same host journal issue, indicating that cover-featured articles received more attention. Further investigations are needed to examine the relationship (i.e. whether there is a true causality) between being featured on the cover, and citations and Altmetric scores received by articles, as well as potentially resulting in greater conservation efforts. Nevertheless, we believe that providing exposure opportunities is likely to better inform the public about the continuing degradation of freshwater ecosystems and its impacts on human well-being, including economic loss and danger to public health. Journal editors can contribute by balancing their selection of featured ecosystems and species when opportunities arise. 5. Increasing exposure opportunities for freshwater ecosystems through various channels seems a promising approach to raise public awareness and appreciation of freshwater biodiversity. Scientists can play an active role and form an alliance with journal editors, conservation organizations, and media, to increase momentum in society for fresh waters to be experienced as essential ecosystems and prevent further degradation of freshwater habitats and biodiversity loss

More exposure opportunities for promoting freshwater conservation

Freshwater ecosystems have a higher percentage of threatened and extinct species than terrestrial or marine realms, but remain under-represented in conservation research and actions arguably as a consequence of less popularity and promotion. Cover images of conservation journals were used as a proxy of exposure and potential promotion opportunities provided for different ecosystems and species. To examine whether articles related to cover images received more attention, citations and Altmetric scores of cover-featured articles were compared with non-featured ones within the same host journal issue. Freshwater ecosystems (10.4%) were featured less often than marine (15.2%) or terrestrial (74.4%) ecosystems on covers of 18 conservation journals from 1997 to 2016. All 15 most featured species are from terrestrial or marine ecosystems. In addition, cover-featured studies showed higher citations and Altmetric scores than non-featured ones within the same host journal issue, indicating that cover-featured articles received more attention. Further investigations are needed to examine the relationship (i.e. whether there is a true causality) between being featured on the cover, and citations and Altmetric scores received by articles, as well as potentially resulting in greater conservation efforts. Nevertheless, we believe that providing exposure opportunities is likely to better inform the public about the continuing degradation of freshwater ecosystems and its impacts on human well-being, including economic loss and danger to public health. Journal editors can contribute by balancing their selection of featured ecosystems and species when opportunities arise. Increasing exposure opportunities for freshwater ecosystems through various channels seems a promising approach to raise public awareness and appreciation of freshwater biodiversity. Scientists can play an active role and form an alliance with journal editors, conservation organizations, and media, to increase momentum in society for fresh waters to be experienced as essential ecosystems and prevent further degradation of freshwater habitats and biodiversity loss. © 2021 The Authors. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.This work has been carried out within the SMART Joint Doctorate (Science for the MAnagement of Rivers and their Tidal systems), funded with the support of the Erasmus Mundus programme of Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency of the European Union and is a contribution to the Leibniz Competition project ‘Freshwater Megafauna Futures’ funded by the Leibniz Association. S.C.J. and F.H. acknowledge the support of German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF; 033W034A). S.D.L. was supported through the Spanish Governmen

Combined effects of life-history traits and human impact on extinction risk of freshwater megafauna.

Megafauna species are intrinsically vulnerable to human impact. Freshwater megafauna (i.e., freshwater animals ≥30 kg, including fishes, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians) are subject to intensive and increasing threats. Thirty‐four species are listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Red List of Threatened Species, the assessments for which are an important basis for conservation actions but remain incomplete for 49 (24%) freshwater megafauna species. Consequently, the window of opportunity for protecting these species could be missed. Identifying the factors that predispose freshwater megafauna to extinction can help predict their extinction risk and facilitate more effective and proactive conservation actions. Thus, we collated 8 life‐history traits for 206 freshwater megafauna species. We used generalized linear mixed models to examine the relationships between extinction risk based on the IUCN Red List categories and the combined effect of multiple traits, as well as the effect of human impact on these relationships for 157 classified species. The most parsimonious model included human impact and traits related to species’ recovery potential including life span, age at maturity, and fecundity. Applying the most parsimonious model to 49 unclassified species predicted that 17 of them are threatened. Accounting for model predictions together with IUCN Red List assessments, 50% of all freshwater megafauna species are considered threatened. The Amazon and Yangtze basins emerged as global diversity hotspots of threatened freshwater megafauna, in addition to existing hotspots, including the Ganges‐Brahmaputra and Mekong basins and the Caspian Sea region. Assessment and monitoring of those species predicted to be threatened are needed, especially in the Amazon and Yangtze basins. Investigation of life‐history traits and trends in population and distribution, regulation of overexploitation, maintaining river connectivity, implementing protected areas focusing on freshwater ecosystems, and integrated basin management are required to protect threatened freshwater megafauna in diversity hotspots.This work was carried out within the SMART Joint Doctorate (Science for the MAnagement of Rivers and their Tidal systems), funded with the support of the Erasmus Mundus program of the European Union, and is a contribution to the Leibniz Competition project Freshwater Megafauna Futures. S.D.L was supported by the European Unio

Floating matter: a neglected component of the ecological integrity of rivers

Floating matter (FM) is a pivotal, albeit neglected, element along river corridors contributing to their ecological integrity. FM consists of particulate matter of natural (e.g. wood, branches, leaves, seeds) and anthropogenic (e.g. plastic, human waste) origin as well as of organisms that, due to its properties, is able to float on the water surface. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive overview of the FM cycle and the fundamental environmental functions FM provides along rivers. Indeed, FM serves as an important geomorphological agent, a dispersal vector for animals and plant propagules, a habitat, a resource, and a biogeochemical component. Furthermore, we collected data on the amount of FM accumulating at dams and in reservoirs, and related it to key characteristics of the respective catchments. River fragmentation truncates the natural dynamics of FM through its extraction at damming structures, alteration in the flow regime, and low morphological complexity, which may decrease FM retention. Finally, we identify key knowledge gaps in relation to the role FM plays in supporting river integrity, and briefly discuss FM management strategies. (c) 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.This work has been carried out within the SMART Joint Doctorate Programme ‘Science for the MAnagement of Rivers and their Tidal systems’, funded by the Erasmus Mundus programme of the European Union (http://www.riverscience.it). We also acknowledge financial support through the Excellence Initiative at the University of Tübingen, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the German Research Foundation (DFG). OS is thankful for a partial support from IGB equal opportunity fund for young female scientists and DFG (SU 405/10-1). SDL has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Grant agreement no. 748625

Combined effects of life-history traits and human impact on extinction risk of freshwater megafauna

Megafauna species are intrinsically vulnerable to human impact. Freshwater megafauna (i.e., freshwater animals >= 30 kg, including fishes, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians) are subject to intensive and increasing threats. Thirty-four species are listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Red List of Threatened Species, the assessments for which are an important basis for conservation actions but remain incomplete for 49 (24%) freshwater megafauna species. Consequently, the window of opportunity for protecting these species could be missed. Identifying the factors that predispose freshwater megafauna to extinction can help predict their extinction risk and facilitate more effective and proactive conservation actions. Thus, we collated 8 life-history traits for 206 freshwater megafauna species. We used generalized linear mixed models to examine the relationships between extinction risk based on the IUCN Red List categories and the combined effect of multiple traits, as well as the effect of human impact on these relationships for 157 classified species. The most parsimonious model included human impact and traits related to species' recovery potential including life span, age at maturity, and fecundity. Applying the most parsimonious model to 49 unclassified species predicted that 17 of them are threatened. Accounting for model predictions together with IUCN Red List assessments, 50% of all freshwater megafauna species are considered threatened. The Amazon and Yangtze basins emerged as global diversity hotspots of threatened freshwater megafauna, in addition to existing hotspots, including the Ganges-Brahmaputra and Mekong basins and the Caspian Sea region. Assessment and monitoring of those species predicted to be threatened are needed, especially in the Amazon and Yangtze basins. Investigation of life-history traits and trends in population and distribution, regulation of overexploitation, maintaining river connectivity, implementing protected areas focusing on freshwater ecosystems, and integrated basin management are required to protect threatened freshwater megafauna in diversity hotspots

Magnetic properties of G-band bright points in a sunspot moat

We present simultaneous spectropolarimetric observations of four visible and three infrared spectral lines from the VTT (Tenerife), together with speckle-reconstructed filtergrams in the G band and the CaII H line core from the DOT (La Palma). After alignment of the data sets, we used the G-band intensity to locate bright points (BPs) in the moat of a regular sunspot. With the cospatial and cotemporal information provided by the polarimetric data, we characterize the magnetic, kinematic, and thermal properties of the BPs. We find that (a) 94 % of the BPs are associated with magnetic fields; (b) their field strengths range between 500 and 1400 G, with a rather flat distribution; (c) the contrast of BPs in the G band depends on the angle between the vector magnetic field and the line of sight; (d) the BPs harbor downflows of magnetized plasma and exhibit Stokes V profiles with large area and amplitude asymmetries; (e) the magnetic interior of BPs is hotter than the immediate field-free surroundings by about 1000 K at equal optical depth; and (f) the mean effective diameter of BPs in our data set is 150 km, with very few BPs larger than 300 km. Most of these properties can be explained by the classical magnetic flux tube model. However, the wide range of BP parameters found in this study indicates that not all G-band BPs are identical to stable long-lived flux tubes or sheets of kG strength.Comment: Accepted in A&A, 20 pages, 21 figures in main text, 6 fig. in the Appendices, 3 figures as jpg (fig. 5, C1, C2

Freshwater megafauna diversity: Patterns, status and threats

Aim: Freshwater megafauna remain underrepresented in research and conservation, despite a disproportionately high risk of extinction due to multiple human threats. Therefore, our aims are threefold; (i) identify global patterns of freshwater megafauna richness and endemism, (ii) assess the conservation status of freshwater megafauna and (iii) demonstrate spatial and temporal patterns of human pressure throughout their distribution ranges. Location: Global. Methods: We identified 207 extant freshwater megafauna species, based on a 30 kg weight threshold, and mapped their distributions using HydroBASINS subcatchments (level 8). Information on conservation status and population trends for each species was extracted from the IUCN Red List website. We investigated human impacts on freshwater megafauna in space and time by examining spatial congruence between their distributions and human pressures, described by the Incident Biodiversity Threat Index and Temporal Human Pressure Index. Results: Freshwater megafauna occur in 76% of the world s main river basins (level 3 HydroBASINS), with species richness peaking in the Amazon, Congo, Orinoco, Mekong and Ganges-Brahmaputra basins. Freshwater megafauna are more threatened than their smaller counterparts within the specific taxonomic groups (i.e., fishes, mammals, reptiles and amphibians). Out of the 93 freshwater megafauna species with known population trends, 71% are in decline. Meanwhile, IUCN Red List assessments reported insufficient or outdated data for 43% of all freshwater megafauna species. Since the early 1990s, human pressure has increased throughout 63% of their distribution ranges, with particularly intense impacts occurring in the Mekong and Ganges-Brahmaputra basins. Main conclusions: Freshwater megafauna species are threatened globally, with intense and increasing human pressures occurring in many of their biodiversity hotspots. We call for research and conservation actions for freshwater megafauna, as they are highly sensitive to present and future pressures including a massive boom in hydropower dam construction in their biodiversity hotspots. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons LtdBundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung, Grant/Award Number: “GLANCE” project (01 LN1320A); European Union’s Horizon 2020 Programme for Research, Technological ?evelopment and demonstration, Grant/Award Number: AQUACROSS (642317); Villum Fonden, Grant/Award Number: VKR023371; Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (Erasmus Mundus Joint ?octorate programme “SMART”); EU Marie Sklodowska-Curie programme, Grant/Award Number: H2020-MSCA-IF-2015-706784, H2020-MSCA-IF-2016-748625; Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Forschung und Kunst Baden-Württemberg (Junior Professorship Program

Theoretical Models of Sunspot Structure and Dynamics

Recent progress in theoretical modeling of a sunspot is reviewed. The observed properties of umbral dots are well reproduced by realistic simulations of magnetoconvection in a vertical, monolithic magnetic field. To understand the penumbra, it is useful to distinguish between the inner penumbra, dominated by bright filaments containing slender dark cores, and the outer penumbra, made up of dark and bright filaments of comparable width with corresponding magnetic fields differing in inclination by some 30 degrees and strong Evershed flows in the dark filaments along nearly horizontal or downward-plunging magnetic fields. The role of magnetic flux pumping in submerging magnetic flux in the outer penumbra is examined through numerical experiments, and different geometric models of the penumbral magnetic field are discussed in the light of high-resolution observations. Recent, realistic numerical MHD simulations of an entire sunspot have succeeded in reproducing the salient features of the convective pattern in the umbra and the inner penumbra. The siphon-flow mechanism still provides the best explanation of the Evershed flow, particularly in the outer penumbra where it often consists of cool, supersonic downflows.Comment: To appear in "Magnetic Coupling between the Interior and the Atmosphere of the Sun", eds. S.S. Hasan and R.J. Rutten, Astrophysics and Space Science Proceedings, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, Berlin, 200