Furfurylamines from biomass: Transaminase catalysed upgrading of furfurals

Furfural is recognised as an attractive platform molecule for the production of solvents, plastics, resins and fuel additives. Furfurylamines have many applications as monomers in biopolymer synthesis and for the preparation of pharmacologically active compounds, although preparation via traditional synthetic routes is not straightforward due to by-product formation and sensitivity of the furan ring to reductive conditions. In this work transaminases (TAms) have been investigated as a mild sustainable method for the amination of furfural and derivatives to access furfurylamines. Preliminary screening with a recently reported colorimetric assay highlighted that a range of furfurals were readily accepted by several transaminases and the use of different amine donors was then investigated. Multistep synthetic routes were required to synthesise furfurylamine derivatives for use as analytical standards, highlighting the benefits of using a one step biocatalytic route. To demonstrate the potential of using TAms for the production of furfurals, the amination of selected compounds was then investigated on a preparative scale

Adaptive Path Planning for Depth Constrained Bathymetric Mapping with an Autonomous Surface Vessel

This paper describes the design, implementation and testing of a suite of algorithms to enable depth constrained autonomous bathymetric (underwater topography) mapping by an Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV). Given a target depth and a bounding polygon, the ASV will find and follow the intersection of the bounding polygon and the depth contour as modeled online with a Gaussian Process (GP). This intersection, once mapped, will then be used as a boundary within which a path will be planned for coverage to build a map of the Bathymetry. Methods for sequential updates to GP's are described allowing online fitting, prediction and hyper-parameter optimisation on a small embedded PC. New algorithms are introduced for the partitioning of convex polygons to allow efficient path planning for coverage. These algorithms are tested both in simulation and in the field with a small twin hull differential thrust vessel built for the task.Comment: 21 pages, 9 Figures, 1 Table. Submitted to The Journal of Field Robotic

Modular chemoenzymatic synthesis of terpenes and their analogues

Non‐natural terpenoids offer potential as pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals. However, their chemical syntheses are often long, complex, and not easily amenable to large‐scale production. Herein, we report a modular chemoenzymatic approach to synthesize terpene analogues from diphosphorylated precursors produced in quantitative yields. Through the addition of prenyl transferases, farnesyl diphosphates, (2E,6E)‐FDP and (2Z,6Z)‐FDP, were isolated in greater than 80 % yields. The synthesis of 14,15‐dimethyl‐FDP, 12‐methyl‐FDP, 12‐hydroxy‐FDP, homo‐FDP, and 15‐methyl‐FDP was also achieved. These modified diphosphates were used with terpene synthases to produce the unnatural sesquiterpenoid semiochemicals (S)‐14,15‐dimethylgermacrene D and (S)‐12‐methylgermacrene D as well as dihydroartemisinic aldehyde. This approach is applicable to the synthesis of many non‐natural terpenoids, offering a scalable route free from repeated chain extensions and capricious chemical phosphorylation reactions

A systematic review of strategies to recruit and retain primary care doctors

Background There is a workforce crisis in primary care. Previous research has looked at the reasons underlying recruitment and retention problems, but little research has looked at what works to improve recruitment and retention. The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate interventions and strategies used to recruit and retain primary care doctors internationally. Methods A systematic review was undertaken. MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL and grey literature were searched from inception to January 2015.Articles assessing interventions aimed at recruiting or retaining doctors in high income countries, applicable to primary care doctors were included. No restrictions on language or year of publication. The first author screened all titles and abstracts and a second author screened 20%. Data extraction was carried out by one author and checked by a second. Meta-analysis was not possible due to heterogeneity. Results 51 studies assessing 42 interventions were retrieved. Interventions were categorised into thirteen groups: financial incentives (n=11), recruiting rural students (n=6), international recruitment (n=4), rural or primary care focused undergraduate placements (n=3), rural or underserved postgraduate training (n=3), well-being or peer support initiatives (n=3), marketing (n=2), mixed interventions (n=5), support for professional development or research (n=5), retainer schemes (n=4), re-entry schemes (n=1), specialised recruiters or case managers (n=2) and delayed partnerships (n=2). Studies were of low methodological quality with no RCTs and only 15 studies with a comparison group. Weak evidence supported the use of postgraduate placements in underserved areas, undergraduate rural placements and recruiting students to medical school from rural areas. There was mixed evidence about financial incentives. A marketing campaign was associated with lower recruitment. Conclusions This is the first systematic review of interventions to improve recruitment and retention of primary care doctors. Although the evidence base for recruiting and care doctors is weak and more high quality research is needed, this review found evidence to support undergraduate and postgraduate placements in underserved areas, and selective recruitment of medical students. Other initiatives covered may have potential to improve recruitment and retention of primary care practitioners, but their effectiveness has not been established

Aphrati and Kato Syme: Pottery, Continuity, and Cult in Late Archaic and Classical Crete

The analysis of ceramics from Aphrati sheds valuable new light on the history of this Cretan settlement and on its relationship with a nearby rural sanctuary at Kato Syme in the Late Archaic and Classical periods. It has long been held that Aphrati was deserted from ca. 600 to 400 B.C. A pottery deposit from the domestic quarter, however, now supports occupation of the city during this period. A ceramic classification system is presented and the morphological development and absolute chronology of several key shapes at Aphrati and Kato Syme are plotted. Historical implications of the ceramic evidence are also explored

OpenSimRoot: widening the scope and application of root architectural models

Research Conducted and Rationale: OpenSimRoot is an open sourced, functional- structural plant model and mathematical description of root growth and function. We describe OpenSimRoot and its functionality to broaden the benefits of root modeling to the plant science community. Description: OpenSimRoot is an extended version of SimRoot, established to simulate root system architecture, nutrient acquisition, and plant growth. OpenSimRoot has a plugin, modular infrastructure, coupling single plant and crop stands to soil nutrient, and water transport models. It estimates the value of root traits for water and nutrient acquisition in environments and plant species. Key results and unique features: The flexible OpenSimRoot design allows upscaling from root anatomy to plant community to estimate 1) resource costs of developmental and anatomical traits, 2) trait synergisms, 3) (inter species) root competition. OpenSimRoot can model 3D images from MRI and X-ray CT of roots in soil. New modules include: 1) soil water dependent water uptake and xylem flow, 2) tiller formation, 3) evapotranspiration, 4) simultaneous simulation of mobile solutes, 5) mesh refinement, and 6) root growth plasticity. Conclusion: OpenSimRoot integrates plant phenotypic data with environmental metadata to support experimental designs and gain mechanistic understanding at system scales

Linear discriminant analysis reveals differences in root architecture in wheat seedlings by nitrogen uptake efficiency

Root architecture impacts water and nutrient uptake efficiency. Identifying exactly which root architectural properties influence these agronomic traits can prove challenging. In this paper approximately 300 wheat plants were divided into four groups using two binary classifications, high vs. low nitrogen uptake efficiency (NUpE), and high vs. low nitrate in medium. The root system architecture for each wheat plant was captured using 16 quantitative variables. The multivariate analysis tool, linear discriminant analysis, was used to construct composite variables, each a linear combination of the original variables, such that the score of the wheat plants on the new variables showed the maximum between-group variability. The results show that the distribution of root system architecture traits differ between low and high NUpE wheat plants and, less strongly, between low NUpE wheat plants grown on low vs. high nitrate media

Simulating the interaction between plant roots, soil water and nutrient flows, and barriers and objects in soil using rootmap

Abstract: Plant productivity is directly affected by the capacity of the root system to forage for soil resources. An enhanced understanding of root-soil interactions provides the potential to improve crop performance in specific soil environments. Interactions between roots and soil are, however, complex. The root-soil environment is heterogeneous and difficult to visualise and measure, root architecture and root growth responses are complex and dynamic, and processes from the ionic and rhizosphere scale right up to the whole crop and even catchment scale are involved. For these reasons, pot experiments are used in root studies to simplify the environment, target specific interactions and aid with visualisation and measurement. Significant challenges exist, however, in relating pot studies to the field, requiring upscaling from a spatially confined and artificially contrived environment to the reality of a more complex cropping environment. Simulation models provide an opportunity to upscale complex root-soil interactions from the pot to the field, but to do so they must represent the way that plant roots explore a restricted pot environment. In this study ROOTMAP, a 3D functional-structural model of root growth and resource capture, was modified to enable the simulation of barriers in soil, and the interaction of plant roots and soil water and nutrients with those barriers. This barrier-modelling utilises custom coding, with the support of Boost.Geometry (Generic Geometry Library) where appropriate. The barrier approach defines the 3D shape and location of any number of what are termed Volume Objects. Roots and soil can be: wholly contained within one Volume Object such as in the case of roots growing in a pot; a plant can have roots distributed between two Volume Objects such as in a split-pot experiment; and they can be wholly outside one or more Volume Objects for simulating the presence of rocks or other hard objects in soil. Volume Objects can be wholly impermeable, such as; pot walls that contain roots within them, or impermeable rocks or hardpan layers that roots grow around. Volume Objects can also have varying degrees of permeability for representing layers or areas in soil that have varying degrees of hardness and varying root penetrability. In this initial version of the code, barriers or objects can be represented as rectangular prisms, giving flat barrier layers or square or rectangular objects such as root/rhizo boxes, or as cylinders, representing curved pots or smooth curved objects in soil. The barrier modelling code calculates the deflection of a root tip when it intersects a boundary, representing the way that plant roots grow around and along object surfaces. It also calculates the effect of semi-permeable objects in soil on root growth into and around those objects. Water and nutrients are distributed through the soil environment by use of a variable 3D grid of sub-volumes or cells. The water and nutrient routines then search for the presence of a barrier or wall (Volume Object) intersecting each cell and the volume of the cell contained inside/outside the barrier is calculated. This combined with the permeability of the barrier determines the water and nutrient transfer within the cell. The result is a model which can simulate the root, water and nutrient dynamics in a bounded-environment. This provides an opportunity to represent root architectural development and root-soil interactions in pots and rhizo-boxes, and investigate how these studies relate to root growth and resource capture in un-bounded field soil

Fair game: exploring the dynamics, perception and environmental impact of ‘surplus’ wild foods in England 10kya-present

This paper brings together zooarchaeological data from Neolithic to Post-medieval sites in England to explore the plasticity of cultural attitudes to the consumption of wild animals. It shows how, through time, game has been considered variously as ‘tabooed’ and ‘edible’, each having implications for patterns of biodiversity and wildlife management. The essential points being made are that deeper-time studies can reveal how human perceptions of ‘surplus foods’ have the potential to both create and remedy problems of environmental sustainability and food security. Perhaps more significantly, this paper argues that understanding the bio-cultural past of edible wild animal species has the potential to transform human attitudes to game in the present. This is important at a time when food security and the production of surplus are pressing national and global concerns