OPA1 processing controls mitochondrial fusion and is regulated by mRNA splicing, membrane potential, and Yme1L

OPA1, a dynamin-related guanosine triphosphatase mutated in dominant optic atrophy, is required for the fusion of mitochondria. Proteolytic cleavage by the mitochondrial processing peptidase generates long isoforms from eight messenger RNA (mRNA) splice forms, whereas further cleavages at protease sites S1 and S2 generate short forms. Using OPA1-null cells, we developed a cellular system to study how individual OPA1 splice forms function in mitochondrial fusion. Only mRNA splice forms that generate a long isoform in addition to one or more short isoforms support substantial mitochondrial fusion activity. On their own, long and short OPA1 isoforms have little activity, but, when coexpressed, they functionally complement each other. Loss of mitochondrial membrane potential destabilizes the long isoforms and enhances the cleavage of OPA1 at S1 but not S2. Cleavage at S2 is regulated by the i-AAA protease Yme1L. Our results suggest that mammalian cells have multiple pathways to control mitochondrial fusion through regulation of the spectrum of OPA1 isoforms

Pollination patterns of flora and vegetation in northern Croatia with reference to Apis mellifera

Pollination patterns i.e. the proportions of entomophilous, anemophilous, autogamous and hydrophilous plant species and those useful for the European honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) in the flora and vegetation of northern Croatia have been determined. The survey included 507 plant taxa, belonging to 95 plant families. The results show that most plant species depend on insect pollination (73.6%), followed by self-pollination (30%), wind (25%) and water pollination (0.6%). For some plant species there are one, two or more modes of pollination; the largest group consists of pure insect pollination (43%), followed by both insect and self-pollination (27%), pure wind pollination (22%), insect and wind pollination (2.6%), and so on. Overall, 54% of plant species useful to European honey bees were found, of which 51% provide pollen and 47% nectar. These results suggest that A. mellifera could be a potential pollinator for about half of the flora. Analysis shows significant differences in pollination patterns among habitat types and that most entomophilous plant taxa are found in grassland, forest and ruderal sites, indicating that these habitats are most important for pollinators. Other characteristics of plant species, such as flowering time, plant family, life form and origin, were also analysed to determine a possible relationship with pollination

The Zrmanja River Estuary (Adriatic Coast, Croatia) – the Need for Interdisciplinary Approach to Protection of Coastal Areas

The Zrmanja River estuary is a semi-enclosed bay immersed in a karstic landscape of the eastern Adriatic coast. It represents a highly indented system which includes part of the Zrmanja River, downstream from the Jankovića Buk, the Novigrad and the Karin Seas, and the strait connecting the Novigrad Sea with the Velebit Channel. The very fact that the estuary of the Zrmanja River is located in the karst area makes this system highly vulnerable and susceptible to possible anthropogenic pressures. Preservation of such and similar water systems relies on the knowledge of the main factors that govern its physical, chemical, biological and geochemical features. Due to the lack of geochemical data for the Zrmanja River estuary, a comprehensive study was carried out to explain sedimentation processes and the origin of the material within this estuary and provide additional knowledge necessary for its sustainable use and preservation. This paper, therefore, attempts to summarize the obtained data, focusing on the main natural and anthropogenic factors that define the geochemistry of the Zrmanja River estuary

Discovering Europe? Identity of the Migrants in the EU

This paper focuses on migration in Europe and European identity. Above all, it aims to explore the capacity of European identity to offer an inclusive form of collective affiliation both for intra- and extra-European migrants. We argue that the probability for both, extra- and intra-EU migrants, to develop European identity is higher than the probability to develop country-of-residence identity since the later one is based on ascriptive criteria and therefore exclusive in its nature. Social scientists from different traditions started only recently to deal with those questions focusing, above all, on the effects of mobility within EU borders on identity and attitudes towards Europe (Favel, 2009; Recchi and Favel, 2009). Our research aims to contribute to this theoretical and empirical debate by analysing also extra-European migrants. The high magnitude of extra-EU immigration (more than 30 million, out of the total 47 million of migrants that reside in EU countries were born outside the EU according to Eurostat 2011) clearly shows the importance of the relationship between migrants and European identity. In our empirical analyses we will rely on 2009 Eurobarometer (EB) and 2009 European Election Survey (EES) dat

Can multiple fish farms be integrated within a semi-enclosed bay without causing acute ecosystem degradation?

The current study explores the possibility that multiple fish farms (FFs) containing sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and sea bream (Sparus aurata) can be successfuly integrated within a semi enclosed bay in the Croatian Adriatic. The research focuses on determining principal environmental factors (EFs) that control the integration and atempts to estimate their individual and synergic ability to influence deposition and removal of organic matter (OM) and trace elements (TE) from the system. The complexity of the designated tasks demanded a comprehensive number of various datasets and samples to be used in the analysis. The ADCP data revealed strong wind induced currents forming within the research domain resulting in high system flushing efficiency (3.5 – 6 days). The sediment samples from all stations contained relatively inert minerals which contributed to overall low OM and TE concentrations and very limited variability found across the entire bathymetric range. The thermal advection effect recorded at two stations was attributed to specific seabed topography and the hydrodynamic response formed during Maestral wind episodes. The results indicate that a successful integration of four FFs has taken place within the research site (semi enclosed bay), and that the key EFs responsible for its success are strong wind induced hydrodynamics, favorable seabed topography and sediment mineral composition. The synergy of the principal EFs that formed within the system was found to have an attenuating effect regarding FFs chemical influence (OM and TE) and an amplifying one regarding spatial footprint which extended to ≈ 2000 m distance

APPLICATION OF ECOLOGICAL ENGINEERING IN LANDFILL REMEDIATION

Ecological engineering is a new branch of engineering based on ecology that emerged in the 1960s from the growing need for more sustainable biological solutions to environmental problems. It is based on the design of natural ecosystems for the benefit of both nature and human society, and its techniques can be applied to a range of environmental problems, from the restoration of degraded ecosystems to the removal of pollutants. One of the major environmental problems worldwide is waste disposal in the form of landfills, with its various negative impacts on the environment, living beings and human health. Conventional landfill closure and remediation techniques have proven to be economically and energetically challenging and are not sufficiently effective in reducing leachate formation and removing pollutants. For this reason, this article presents several ecological engineering techniques that can be used in landfill remediation. Phytocapping is an alternative to conventional cover systems that uses plants to control and limit water infiltration into waste, leachate formation, stabilize landfills, control erosion, and reduce methane emissions. Phytoremediation is an environmentally friendly technology for soil remediation through natural processes, in two forms: phytoextraction and phytostabilization. Phytoextraction uses plants to extract and remove pollutants from waste and soil, while phytostabilization is used to immobilize pollutants in the root zone. Constructed wetlands, designed and constructed according to the principles of natural wetland ecosystems, can be used to clean leachate. Natural attenuation uses natural biological processes to mitigate pollution without taking specific action. All of these techniques are based on viable natural solutions that can reduce remediation costs and further maintenance of the landfill. Although they are increasingly being considered in developed countries, there are few examples of their application in landfill remediation in Croatia

Cultures of rejection in the Covid-19 crisis

This article offers a collectively developed analysis of the Covid-19 crisis as it relates to contemporary cultures of rejection, i.e. the socio-cultural conditions in which authoritarian and right-wing populist politics thrive, in Europe. We explore how the pandemic and its management reinforces, transforms and/or overrides existing antagonisms and institutes new ones in Serbia, Croatia, Austria, Germany and Sweden. We discuss how the Covid-19 crisis affects the rise of new statisms; gendered patterns of social reproduction; mobility and migration; digital infrastructures; and new political mobilization

Geochemical characteristics of sediments of the Novigrad sea area

Novigradsko more uvučeni je zaljev Jadranskog mora u čijem se sjeveroistočnom dijelu ulijeva rijeka Zrmanja tvoreći visokostratificirani estuarij. Istraživanje geokemijskih, sedimentoloških i mineraloških značajki sedimenata šireg područja Novigradskog mora provedeno je u svrhu određivanje podrijetla materijala, uvjeta taloženja te prirodnih i antropogenih faktora utjecaja na sedimentaciju u Novigradskom moru. Rezultati istraživanja pokazali su da je sastav recentnih sedimenata Novigradskog akvatorija određen prvenstveno prirodnim čimbenicima, iako sporadično nalazimo i utjecaj antropogenog djelovanja. Sastav istraživanih recentnih sedimenata, osim geološkom podlogom, hidrodinamskim uvjetima i biogenom produkcijom, uvjetovan je i fizikalnokemijskim procesima koji reguliraju donos otopljene i partikulatne faze rijekama Zrmanjom i Karišnicom te koagulacijom donešenog koloidnog materijala duž gradijenta saliniteta. Materijal donešen rijekom Zrmanjom dijelom se taloži na ušća rijeke u Novigradsko more dok se neistaloženi materijal u suspenziji odnosi dalje i taloži u dubljim dijelovima bazena. Reoksidacija metalnih oksida na granici voda-sediment čini sedimente Novigradskog mora mjestom odlaganja metala. Zatvorenost bazena i ograničena izmjena vode s Novigradskim morem uvjetuje u Karinskom moru pojavu suboksičnih uvjeta. Većina materijala donešena rijekama Zrmanjom i Karišnicom zadržava se na području Novigradskog i Karinskog mora. Sastav sedimenata rijeke Zrmanje upućuje na utjecaj tvornice Jadral i prijenos materijala iz njezine neposredne blizine u vodeni sustav rijeke Zrmanje vjetrom. Sastav površinskih i pridnenih voda istraživanog područja odražava geološku i hidrogeološku podlogu, dok je raspodjela u vodenom stupcu uvjetovana salinitetom i remobilizacijom elemenata iz sedimenta u vodeni stupac.Novigrad Sea is a small bay of the Adriatic Sea in which northeastern part Zrmanja River discharges and forms highly stratified estuary. Investigation of geochemical, sedimentological and mineralogical characteristics of sediments of wider area of the Novigrad Sea was conducted in order to determine the origin of the material, the deposition conditions as well as natural and anthropogenic factors of influences on sedimentation in the Novigrad Sea. The results showed that the composition of the Novigrad Sea sediments is primarily determined by natural factors, although sporadically we find the impact of anthropogenic activities. Composition of the investigated sediments is influenced by geological background, hydrodynamic conditions, biogenic production as well as the physico-chemical processes that govern the yield of dissolved and particulate phases of the Zrmanja River and Karišnica River and coagulation of colloidal materials along the salinity gradient. Material brought by Zrmanja River partly deposits on the mouth of the river in the Novigrad Sea while the material in suspension deposits in the deeper parts of the basin. Reoxidation of metal oxides at the water-surface interface makes Novigrad Sea sediments place of trace element disposal. Most of the material brought by River Zrmanja and River Karišnica deposits within the Novigrad Sea and the Karin Sea area. The composition of the Zrmanja River sediments indicates the impact of the ex-alumina factory Jadral and transfer by wind of the material from its immediate proximity to the water system of the Zrmanja River. The composition of surface and bottom water of the Novigrad Sea area reflects the geological and hydrogeological background, while the distribution of trace elements in the water column is determined by salinity and remobilization of elements from the sediment into the water column

Problematika prevođenja pojmova iz nautičkog turizma između hrvatskog i švedskog

Syftet med detta mastersarbete är att identifiera och analysera problem som förekommer vid översättning av texter om nautisk turism och att föreslå möjliga lösningar. I mitt mastersarbete ska jag 2 förklara översättningsproblem som jag kunde träffa under översättningsprocessen i olika texter som jag har valt att arbeta med och som handlar om nautisk turism och segling. Mastersarbetet är uppdelat i åtta delar: inledning, beskrivning av texterna, litteratur, arbetsmetod och teoretiskt ramverk, analys av översättningsproblem, slutsats, källtexter, översatta texter och på slutet en ordlista. I inledningen förklarar jag arbetets ämne och syfte. I det andra kapitlet presenterar jag texter som jag har översatt till svenska och kroatiska. Därefter följer det teoretiska ramverket, vilken litteratur och källor jag har använt och mina arbetsmetoder. Sedan kommer den teoretiska delen där jag beskriver svårigheter som inträffade och anmärker på flera översättningsproblem som dykte upp under översättningsprocessen med begrepp som tillhör nautiska turismen. Jag ger också lösningar till hur jag har löst dessa problem. Den sjätte delen innehåller de kroatiska källtexterna och deras översättningar till svenska och i den sjunde delen kommer de svenska källtexterna och deras översättningar till kroatiska. På slutet ger jag en ordlista i vilken jag listar upp de svenska termerna och deras kroatiska motsvarigheter

Zionism in Croatia

Tema mog diplomskog rada je cionizam u Hrvatskoj. Ovim radom prikazujem nastanak cionizma, njegov razvoj i obujam rada u Hrvatskoj, odnosno hrvatskim zemljama. U radu je dan pregled razvoja ovog pokreta na našim prostorima te je prikazana atmosfera u kojoj je nastao i do kada je taj pokret bio aktivan. Ujedno sam istražila cionistička društva te Savez cionista koji su djelovali na prostoru Hrvatske i navela kratak pregled njihovog djelovanja. Također sam se bavila cjelokupnim pokretom cionizma u Hrvatskoj u odnosu na svjetski. Od 70. godine židovski je narod u dijaspori, bez svoje države. Stoljećima je narod trpio razne oblike nepravde i uskraćivala su mu se čak i najosnovnija prava. Jedan od razlog je dakako i antisemitizam, odnosno njegove razne vrste ovisno o periodu i području kada i gdje su živjeli. Uvođenjem tolerancije prema Židovima, još od doba Marije Terezije, u sve se više zemalja diljem Europe Židovi počinju akulturirati, u prvom redu kulturološki i vjerski. No, sredinom i krajem 19. stoljeća, u Europi ponovno raste antisemitizam, tako je i kao izravna posljedica nastala želja za stvaranjem neovisne židovske države, cionistička ideja u židovstvu. Ideja o stvaranju samostalne židovske države ne veže se samo uz Židove, već i Nežidove. Cionizam je, između ostalog, bio i poziv Židovima da se upoznaju s vlastitom prošlošću, kulturom i posebice hebrejskim jezikom i da se njima u javnosti ponose, što su sve u drugoj polovici 19. stoljeća zanemarivali na račun kulture i jezika sredine u kojoj su živjeli.1 Cionizam se kao pokret u Europi razvio devedesetih godina 19. stoljeća, dok se u Hrvatskoj javlja tek na početku 20.stoljeća. Pokret je svoj vrhunac u Hrvatskoj doživio dvadesetih godina 20. stoljeća. Najviše je maha uzeo u Zagrebu, zatim Slavonskom Brodu i Osijeku, te u Varaždinu i Vinkovcima, a od tih se centara širio dalje u veća i/ili manja mjesta. Stoga je ovaj diplomski rad pregled mjesta i raširenosti cionističkog pokreta u Hrvatskoj. Metodologija rada temelji se na primarnim i sekundarnim izvorima. Sekundarni su izvori, knjige, prikupljeni u dostupnim knjižnicama. Primarni su izvor arhivska građa iz Jevrejskog istorijskog muzeja (JIM) u Beogradu te primarna literatura toga razdoblja