Can mud (silt and clay) concentration be used to predict soil organic carbon content within seagrass ecosystems?

© Author(s) 2016. The emerging field of blue carbon science is seeking cost-effective ways to estimate the organic carbon content of soils that are bound by coastal vegetated ecosystems. Organic carbon (Corg) content in terrestrial soils and marine sediments has been correlated with mud content (i.e., silt and clay, particle sizes <63μm), however, empirical tests of this theory are lacking for coastal vegetated ecosystems. Here, we compiled data (n Combining double low line 1345) on the relationship between Corg and mud contents in seagrass ecosystems (79 cores) and adjacent bare sediments (21 cores) to address whether mud can be used to predict soil Corg content. We also combined these data with the ?13C signatures of the soil Corg to understand the sources of Corg stores. The results showed that mud is positively correlated with soil Corg content only when the contribution of seagrass-derived Corg to the sedimentary Corg pool is relatively low, such as in small and fast-growing meadows of the genera Zostera, Halodule and Halophila, and in bare sediments adjacent to seagrass ecosystems. In large and long-living seagrass meadows of the genera Posidonia and Amphibolis there was a lack of, or poor relationship between mud and soil Corg content, related to a higher contribution of seagrass-derived Corg to the sedimentary Corg pool in these meadows. The relatively high soil Corg contents with relatively low mud contents (e.g., mud-Corg saturation) in bare sediments and Zostera, Halodule and Halophila meadows was related to significant allochthonous inputs of terrestrial organic matter, while higher contribution of seagrass detritus in Amphibolis and Posidonia meadows disrupted the correlation expected between soil Corg and mud contents. This study shows that mud is not a universal proxy for blue carbon content in seagrass ecosystems, and therefore should not be applied generally across all seagrass habitats. Mud content can only be used as a proxy to estimate soil Corg content for scaling up purposes when opportunistic and/or low biomass seagrass species (i.e., Zostera, Halodule and Halophila) are present (explaining 34 to 91% of variability), and in bare sediments (explaining 78% of the variability). The results obtained could enable robust scaling up exercises at a low cost as part of blue carbon stock assessments

Carbon sequestration by Australian tidal marshes

Australia's tidal marshes have suffered significant losses but their recently recognised importance in CO2 sequestration is creating opportunities for their protection and restoration. We compiled all available data on soil organic carbon (OC) storage in Australia's tidal marshes (323 cores). OC stocks in the surface 1 m averaged 165.41 (SE 6.96) Mg OC ha-1 (range 14-963 Mg OC ha-1). The mean OC accumulation rate was 0.55 ± 0.02 Mg OC ha-1 yr -1. Geomorphology was the most important predictor of OC stocks, with fluvial sites having twice the stock of OC as seaward sites. Australia's 1.4 million hectares of tidal marshes contain an estimated 212 million tonnes of OC in the surface 1 m, with a potential CO2 -equivalent value of $USD7.19 billion. Annual sequestration is 0.75 Tg OC yr -1, with a CO2 -equivalent value of$USD28.02 million per annum. This study provides the most comprehensive estimates of tidal marsh blue carbon in Australia, and illustrates their importance in climate change mitigation and adaptation, acting as CO2 sinks and buffering the impacts of rising sea level. We outline potential further development of carbon offset schemes to restore the sequestration capacity and other ecosystem services provided by Australia tidal marshes

Supercritical fluid technology as a tool to prepare gradient multifunctional architectures towards regeneration of osteochondral injuries

Platelet lysates (PLs) are a natural source of growth factors (GFs) known for its stimulatory role on stem cells which can be obtained after activation of platelets from blood plasma. The possibility to use PLs as growth factor source for tissue healing and regeneration has been pursued following different strategies. Platelet lysates are an enriched pool of growth factors which can be used as either a GFs source or as a three-dimensional (3D) hydrogel. However, most of current PLs-based hydrogels lack stability, exhibiting significant shrinking behavior. This chapter focuses on the application of supercritical fluid technology to develop three-dimensional architectures of PL constructs, crosslinked with genipin. The proposed technology allows in a single step operation the development of mechanically stable porous structures, through chemical crosslinking of the growth factors present in the PL pool, followed by supercritical drying of the samples. Furthermore gradient structures of PL-based structures with bioactive glass are also presented and are described as an interesting approach to the treatment of osteochondral defects.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Participatory planning and quality assessment: contributions of a nursing management technology

Objective: to analyze the outcomes of participatory planning and quality assessment of the nursing care provided in a hospital ward using a nursing management technology. Method: Convergent care research focuses on research and practice intervention, developed in a hospital in southern Brazil from April to August 2016. Participatory planning and quality evaluation was performed using the PRAXIS® technology. Results: In the participatory planning, a survey of needs/problems was carried out by 33 professionals followed by 5 workshops, where mission, guiding principles, 4 priority problems, expected results, objectives and plans of activities were defined. For quality evaluation, two indicators were used: satisfaction and notification of adverse events. The evaluation was carried out with 101 patients and /or relatives, predominating “great or good”. Adverse events, 28 records, predominating medication errors. Conclusion: Participatory planning and quality assessment are essential to improve nursing care management and the PRAXIS® technological innovation has been a useful resource.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Contrasting prefrontal cortex contributions to episodic memory dysfunction in behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia and alzheimer's disease

Recent evidence has questioned the integrity of episodic memory in behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), where recall performance is impaired to the same extent as in Alzheimer's disease (AD). While these deficits appear to be mediated by divergent patterns of brain atrophy, there is evidence to suggest that certain prefrontal regions are implicated across both patient groups. In this study we sought to further elucidate the dorsolateral (DLPFC) and ventromedial (VMPFC) prefrontal contributions to episodic memory impairment in bvFTD and AD. Performance on episodic memory tasks and neuropsychological measures typically tapping into either DLPFC or VMPFC functions was assessed in 22 bvFTD, 32 AD patients and 35 age- and education-matched controls. Behaviourally, patient groups did not differ on measures of episodic memory recall or DLPFC-mediated executive functions. BvFTD patients were significantly more impaired on measures of VMPFC-mediated executive functions. Composite measures of the recall, DLPFC and VMPFC task scores were covaried against the T1 MRI scans of all participants to identify regions of atrophy correlating with performance on these tasks. Imaging analysis showed that impaired recall performance is associated with divergent patterns of PFC atrophy in bvFTD and AD. Whereas in bvFTD, PFC atrophy covariates for recall encompassed both DLPFC and VMPFC regions, only the DLPFC was implicated in AD. Our results suggest that episodic memory deficits in bvFTD and AD are underpinned by divergent prefrontal mechanisms. Moreover, we argue that these differences are not adequately captured by existing neuropsychological measures

Team sports performance analysed through the lens of social network theory: implications for research and practice

This paper discusses how social network analyses and graph theory can be implemented in team sports performance analyses to evaluate individual (micro) and collective (macro) performance data, and how to use this information for designing practice tasks. Moreover, we briefly outline possible limitations of social network studies and provide suggestions for future research. Instead of cataloguing discrete events or player actions, it has been argued that researchers need to consider the synergistic interpersonal processes emerging between teammates in competitive performance environments. Theoretical assumptions on team coordination prompted the emergence of innovative, theoretically-driven methods for assessing collective team sport behaviours. Here, we contribute to this theoretical and practical debate by conceptualising sports teams as complex social networks. From this perspective, players are viewed as network nodes, connected through relevant information variables (e.g., a ball passing action), sustaining complex patterns of interaction between teammates (e.g., a ball passing network). Specialized tools and metrics related to graph theory could be applied to evaluate structural and topological properties of interpersonal interactions of teammates, complementing more traditional analysis methods. This innovative methodology moves beyond use of common notation analysis methods, providing a richer understanding of the complexity of interpersonal interactions sustaining collective team sports performance. The proposed approach provides practical applications for coaches, performance analysts, practitioners and researchers by establishing social network analyses as a useful approach for capturing the emergent properties of interactions between players in sports teams

Emergence of contact injuries in invasion team sports : an ecological dynamics rationale

The incidence of contact injuries in team sports is considerable, and injury mechanisms need to be comprehensively understood to facilitate the adoption of preventive measures. In Association Football, evidence shows that the highest prevalence of contact injuries emerges in one-on-one interactions. However, previous studies have tended to operationally report injury mechanisms in isolation, failing to provide a theoretical rationale to explain how injuries might emerge from interactions between opposing players. In this position paper, we propose an ecological dynamics framework to enhance current understanding of behavioural processes leading to contact injuries in team sports. Based on previous research highlighting the dynamics of performer–environment interactions, contact injuries are proposed to emerge from symmetry-breaking processes during on-field interpersonal interactions among competing players and the ball. Central to this approach is consideration of candidate control parameters that may provide insights on the information sources used by players to reduce risk of contact injuries during performance. Clinically, an ecological dynamics analysis could allow sport practitioners to design training sessions based on selected parameter threshold values as primary and/or secondary preventing measures during training and rehabilitation sessions

Survival in Southern European patients waitlisted for kidney transplant after graft failure: A competing risk analysis

Background Whether patients waitlisted for a second transplant after failure of a previous kidney graft have higher mortality than transplant-näive waitlisted patients is uncertain. Methods We assessed the relationship between a failed transplant and mortality in 3851 adult KT candidates, listed between 1984–2012, using a competing risk analysis in the total population and in a propensity score-matched cohort. Mortality was also modeled by inverse probability weighting (IPTW) competing risk regression. Results At waitlist entry 225 (5.8%) patients had experienced transplant failure. All-cause mortality was higher in the post-graft failure group (16% vs. 11%; P = 0.033). Most deaths occurred within three years after listing. Cardiovascular disease was the leading cause of death (25.3%), followed by infections (19.3%). Multivariate competing risk regression showed that prior transplant failure was associated with a 1.5-fold increased risk of mortality (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01–2.2). After propensity score matching (1:5), the competing risk regression model revealed a subhazard ratio (SHR) of 1.6 (95% CI, 1.01–2.5). A similar mortality risk was observed after the IPTW analysis (SHR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1–2.6). Conclusions Previous transplant failure is associated with increased mortality among KT candidates after relisting. This information is important in daily clinical practice when assessing relisted patients for a retransplant.This study was supported in part by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) (grant ICI14/00016) from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III co-funded by the Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional±FEDER, RETICS (REDINREN RD16/0009/0006, RD16/0009/0031