Bat Species Diversity in Old-Growth vs. Second Growth Forests in Lilley Cornett Woods, Letcher County, Kentucky

Bat activity in old-growth forests (+150 years) is a subject that is poorly understood. The majority of old-growth forests are located in the northwestern portion of the United States, and with current silviculture practices, many forests are being cut. There have been no published studies that specifically examine bat use of old-growth forests in Kentucky. The objective of this study was to determine the diversity of bat species associated with old-growth and second growth forests within the Lilley Cornett Woods Appalachian Ecological Research Station, Letcher County, Kentucky. This study was conducted over 2 field seasons; 2009 and 2010. Mist netting was conducted during July 2009, consisting of 13 sites (6 in old-growth, 7 in second growth forests). A total of 26 individuals, representing 5 species were captured. The little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus) was the most abundant bat captured (n=11, 42%). The tri-colored bat (Permyotis subflavus) (n=6, 23%), northern bat (M. septentrionalis) (n=6, 23%), big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus) (n=2), and hoary bat (Lasiurus cinereus) were also captured during mist net surveys. Only 15% of bats were captured in old-growth forest sites, while 85% of captures occurred in second growth forest. Acoustical monitoring was conducted from 22 May - 21 August 2010, with acoustic sampling occurring nightly and continuously for 85 nights. Anabat II ultrasonic bat detectors with ZCAIM units were deployed in old-growth and second growth forest locations for two week sampling periods (23 sampling locations; 14 in old-growth and 9 in second growth). There were 34,536 identified echolocation passes recorded from 10 different bat species, i.e., tri-colored bat, little brown bat, northern bat, big brown bat, hoary bat, Indiana bat (M. sodalis), gray bat (M. grisescens), eastern red bat (Lasiurus borealis), eastern small-footed bat (M. leibii), southeastern bat (M. austroriparius), evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis). The second growth forest recorded more bat passes than the old-growth forest (61% and 39%, respectively), with the tri-colored bat being the most frequently recorded bat in the old-growth forest; while the little brown bat was the most frequently recorded bat in the second growth forest. There was very little similarity in terms of the species captured using mist nets and the species detected using Anabat; and between the bat species captured during mist netting in the old-growth forest vs. second growth forest (SJ = 0.36 and 0.20, respectively). The region which comprises the Lilley Cornett Woods Appalachian Ecological Research Station supports a diverse population of bat species. It is recommended the forested habitat, especially the old-growth segment, and the riparian community associated with Line Fork Creek be preserved in order to maintain the area\u27s Chiropteran community

Identification of a Rare Coding Variant in Complement 3 Associated with Age-related Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is a common cause of blindness in the elderly. To identify rare coding variants associated with a large increase in risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), we sequenced 2,335 cases and 789 controls in 10 candidate loci (57 genes). To increase power, we augmented our control set with ancestry-matched exome sequenced controls. An analysis of coding variation in 2,268 AMD cases and 2,268 ancestry matched controls revealed two large-effect rare variants; previously described R1210C in the CFH gene (fcase = 0.51%, fcontrol = 0.02%, OR = 23.11), and newly identified K155Q in the C3 gene (fcase = 1.06%, fcontrol = 0.39%, OR = 2.68). The variants suggest decreased inhibition of C3 by Factor H, resulting in increased activation of the alternative complement pathway, as a key component of disease biology

Genetic variants associated with subjective well-being, depressive symptoms, and neuroticism identified through genome-wide analyses

Very few genetic variants have been associated with depression and neuroticism, likely because of limitations on sample size in previous studies. Subjective well-being, a phenotype that is genetically correlated with both of these traits, has not yet been studied with genome-wide data. We conducted genome-wide association studies of three phenotypes: subjective well-being (n = 298,420), depressive symptoms (n = 161,460), and neuroticism (n = 170,911). We identify 3 variants associated with subjective well-being, 2 variants associated with depressive symptoms, and 11 variants associated with neuroticism, including 2 inversion polymorphisms. The two loci associated with depressive symptoms replicate in an independent depression sample. Joint analyses that exploit the high genetic correlations between the phenotypes (|ρ^| ≈ 0.8) strengthen the overall credibility of the findings and allow us to identify additional variants. Across our phenotypes, loci regulating expression in central nervous system and adrenal or pancreas tissues are strongly enriched for association.</p

The Labor Market Consequences of Childhood Maladjustment*

Objective. This article uses data from the National Child Development Survey on a cohort of individuals born in Great Britain during the first week of March 1958 to investigate whether educational attainment and labor force behavior 33 years later are affected by childhood behavioral problems that are exhibited at both age 7 and age 16. Method. Regression methods are used to test hypotheses concerning these effects. Results. Our results indicate that maladjusted children suffer economically when they reach adulthood. Maladjusted children perform worse on aptitude tests and have lower educational attainment. Maladjusted children also are less likely to be employed at age 33 and to have lower wages when employed. Part of the reduced employment and wages is the result of lower education, but part is also due to other factors. Conclusion. Future research should investigate whether adult labor market outcomes vary with the type of behavioral problems exhibited at younger ages. Parents often worry when the behavior of their young children deviates from what appears to be the norm for their age. In part, this concern is motivated by a fear that a maladjusted child—that is, a child whose be

Report of the Joint Workshop on Induced Special Regions

International audienc

Towards an Understanding of the Dynamics of Work and Employment Relations during Austerity

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of 'Towards an Understanding of the Dynamics of Work and Employment Relations during Austerity. Public Organiz Rev (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-020-00488-z'This study considers how public sector organisations respond to the effects of austerity. While some organisations take advantage of austerity to increase the workload of employees with little or no engagement with employees, others encourage dialogue by increasing employee and union engagement. Drawing on a systematic analysis of 26 articles, the study finds that austerity policies have negative consequences for public sector employees and presents employee voice as a potential mitigator of the negative consequences. This study is one of the first to review the small but growing literature on the effects of austerity on work and employment relationship.Peer reviewe