Transpiration from subarctic deciduous woodlands: environmental controls and contribution to ecosystem evapotranspiration

Potential land‐climate feedbacks in subarctic regions, where rapid warming is driving forest expansion into the tundra, may be mediated by differences in transpiration of different plant functional types. Here we assess the environmental controls of overstorey transpiration and its relevance for ecosystem evapotranspiration in subarctic deciduous woodlands. We measured overstorey transpiration of mountain birch canopies and ecosystem evapotranspiration in two locations in northern Fennoscandia, having dense (Abisko) and sparse (Kevo) overstories. For Kevo, we also upscale chamber‐measured understorey evapotranspiration from shrubs and lichen using a detailed land cover map. Sub‐daily evaporative fluxes were not affected by soil moisture, and showed similar controls by vapour pressure deficit and radiation across sites. At the daily timescale, increases in evaporative demand led to proportionally higher contributions of overstorey transpiration to ecosystem evapotranspiration. For the entire growing season, the overstorey transpired 33% of ecosystem evapotranspiration in Abisko and only 16% in Kevo. At this latter site, the understorey had a higher leaf area index and contributed more to ecosystem evapotranspiration compared to the overstorey birch canopy. In Abisko, growing season evapotranspiration was 27% higher than precipitation, consistent with a gradual soil moisture depletion over the summer. Our results show that overstorey canopy transpiration in subarctic deciduous woodlands is not the dominant evaporative flux. However, given the observed environmental sensitivity of evapotranspiration components, the role of deciduous trees in driving ecosystem evapotranspiration may increase with the predicted increases in tree cover and evaporative demand across subarctic regions

Implications of climate change for agricultural productivity in the early twenty-first century

This paper reviews recent literature concerning a wide range of processes through which climate change could potentially impact global-scale agricultural productivity, and presents projections of changes in relevant meteorological, hydrological and plant physiological quantities from a climate model ensemble to illustrate key areas of uncertainty. Few global-scale assessments have been carried out, and these are limited in their ability to capture the uncertainty in climate projections, and omit potentially important aspects such as extreme events and changes in pests and diseases. There is a lack of clarity on how climate change impacts on drought are best quantified from an agricultural perspective, with different metrics giving very different impressions of future risk. The dependence of some regional agriculture on remote rainfall, snowmelt and glaciers adds to the complexity. Indirect impacts via sea-level rise, storms and diseases have not been quantified. Perhaps most seriously, there is high uncertainty in the extent to which the direct effects of CO2 rise on plant physiology will interact with climate change in affecting productivity. At present, the aggregate impacts of climate change on global-scale agricultural productivity cannot be reliably quantified

Predictors of complications in gynaecological oncological surgery: a prospective multicentre study (UKGOSOC-UK gynaecological oncology surgical outcomes and complications)

Background: There are limited data on surgical outcomes in gynaecological oncology. We report on predictors of complications in a multicentre prospective study. / Methods: Data on surgical procedures and resulting complications were contemporaneously recorded on consented patients in 10 participating UK gynaecological cancer centres. Patients were sent follow-up letters to capture any further complications. Post-operative (Post-op) complications were graded (I–V) in increasing severity using the Clavien-Dindo system. Grade I complications were excluded from the analysis. Univariable and multivariable regression was used to identify predictors of complications using all surgery for intra-operative (Intra-op) and only those with both hospital and patient-reported data for Post-op complications. / Results: Prospective data were available on 2948 major operations undertaken between April 2010 and February 2012. Median age was 62 years, with 35% obese and 20.4% ASA grade ⩾3. Consultant gynaecological oncologists performed 74.3% of operations. Intra-op complications were reported in 139 of 2948 and Grade II–V Post-op complications in 379 of 1462 surgeries. The predictors of risk were different for Intra-op and Post-op complications. For Intra-op complications, previous abdominal surgery, metabolic/endocrine disorders (excluding diabetes), surgical complexity and final diagnosis were significant in univariable and multivariable regression (P<0.05), with diabetes only in multivariable regression (P=0.006). For Post-op complications, age, comorbidity status, diabetes, surgical approach, duration of surgery, and final diagnosis were significant in both univariable and multivariable regression (P<0.05). / Conclusions: This multicentre prospective audit benchmarks the considerable morbidity associated with gynaecological oncology surgery. There are significant patient and surgical factors that influence this risk

Understanding the everyday designer in organisations

This paper builds upon the existing concept of an everyday designer as a non-expert designer who carries out design activities using available resources in a given environment. It does so by examining the design activities undertaken by non-expert, informal, designers in organisations who make use of the formal and informal technology already in use in organisations while designing to direct, influence, change or transform the practices of people in the organisation. These people represent a cohort of designers who are given little attention in the literature on information systems, despite their central role in the formation of practice and enactment of technology in organisations. The paper describes the experiences of 18 everyday designers in an academic setting using three concepts: everyday designer in an organisation, empathy through design and experiencing an awareness gap. These concepts were constructed through the analysis of in-depth interviews with the participants. The paper concludes with a call for tool support for everyday designers in organisations to enable them to better understand the audience for whom they are designing and the role technology plays in the organisation

The impact of pre‐operative intravenous iron on quality of life after colorectal cancer surgery: outcomes from the intravenous iron in colorectal cancer‐associated anaemia (IVICA) trial

Anaemia is associated with a reduction in quality of life, and is common in patients with colorectal cancer . Werecently reported thefindings of the intravenous iron in colorectal cancer-associated anaemia (IVICA) trialcomparing haemoglobin levels and transfusion requirements following intravenous or oral iron replacement inanaemic colorectal cancer patients undergoing elective surgery. In this follow-up study, we compared theefficacy of intravenous and oral iron at improving quality of life in this patient group. We conducted amulticentre, open-label randomised controlled trial. Anaemic colorectal cancer patients were randomlyallocated at least two weeks pre-operatively, to receive either oral (ferrous sulphate) or intravenous (ferriccarboxymaltose) iron. We assessed haemoglobin and quality of life scores at recruitment, immediately beforesurgery and at outpatient review approximately three months postoperatively, using the Short Form 36,EuroQoL 5-dimension 5-level and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Anaemia questionnaires. Werecruited 116 anaemic patients across seven UK centres (oral iron n=61 (53%), and intravenous iron n=55(47%)). Eleven quality of life components increased by a clinically significant margin in the intravenous irongroup between recruitment and surgery compared with one component for oral iron. Median (IQR [range])visual analogue scores were significantly higher with intravenous iron at a three month outpatient review (oraliron 70, (60–85 [20–95]); intravenous iron 90 (80–90 [50–100]), p=0.001). The Functional Assessment ofCancer Therapy–Anaemia score comprises of subscales related to cancer, fatigue and non-fatigue itemsrelevant to anaemia. Median outpatient scores were higher, and hence favourable, for intravenous iron on theFunctional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Anaemia subscale (oral iron 66 (55–72 [23–80]); intravenous iron 71(66–77 [46–80]); p=0.002), Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Anaemia trial outcome index (oral iron108 (90–123 [35–135]); intravenous iron 121 (113–124 [81–135]); p=0.003) and Functional Assessment ofCancer Therapy–Anaemia total score (oral iron 151 (132–170 [69–183]); intravenous iron 168 (160–174 [125–186]); p=0.005). Thesefindings indicate that intravenous iron is more efficacious at improving quality of lifescores than oral iron in anaemic colorectal cancer patients

Bilayer-spanning DNA nanopores with voltage-switching between open and closed state.

Membrane-spanning nanopores from folded DNA are a recent example of biomimetic man-made nanostructures that can open up applications in biosensing, drug delivery, and nanofluidics. In this report, we generate a DNA nanopore based on the archetypal six-helix-bundle architecture and systematically characterize it via single-channel current recordings to address several fundamental scientific questions in this emerging field. We establish that the DNA pores exhibit two voltage-dependent conductance states. Low transmembrane voltages favor a stable high-conductance level, which corresponds to an unobstructed DNA pore. The expected inner width of the open channel is confirmed by measuring the conductance change as a function of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) size, whereby smaller PEGs are assumed to enter the pore. PEG sizing also clarifies that the main ion-conducting path runs through the membrane-spanning channel lumen as opposed to any proposed gap between the outer pore wall and the lipid bilayer. At higher voltages, the channel shows a main low-conductance state probably caused by electric-field-induced changes of the DNA pore in its conformation or orientation. This voltage-dependent switching between the open and closed states is observed with planar lipid bilayers as well as bilayers mounted on glass nanopipettes. These findings settle a discrepancy between two previously published conductances. By systematically exploring a large space of parameters and answering key questions, our report supports the development of DNA nanopores for nanobiotechnology.The SH lab is supported by the Leverhulme Trust (RPG-170), UCL Chemistry, EPSRC (Institutional Sponsorship Award), the National Physical Laboratory, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies. KG acknowledges funding from the Winton Program of Physics for Sustainability, Gates Cambridge and the Oppenheimer Trust. UFK was supported by an ERC starting grant #261101.This is the final version of the article. It was first published by ACS under the ACS AuthorChoice license at http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/nn5039433 This permits copying and redistribution of the article or any adaptations for non-commercial purposes

Thyroid control over biomembranes: VI. Lipids in liver mitochondria and microsomes of hypothyroid rats

The lipids of liver mitochondria prepared from normal rats and from rats made hypothyroid by thyroidectomy and injection with131INa contained similar amounts, per mg protein, of total lipids, phospholipids, neutral lipids and lipid phosphorus. Hypothyroidism caused a doubling of the relative amounts of mitochondrial cardiolipins (CL; to 20.5% of the phospholipid P) and an accompanying trend (although statistically not significant) toward decreased amounts of both phosphatidylcholines (PC) and phosphatidylserines (PS), with phosphatidylethanolamines (PE) remaining unchanged. The pattern of elevated 18∶2 fatty acyl content and depleted 20∶4 acyl groups of the mitochondrial phospholipids of hypothyroid preparations was reflected to varying degrees in the resolved phospholipids, with PC showing greater degrees of abnormality than PE, and CL showing none. Hypothyroidism produced the same abnormal pattern of fatty acyl distributions in liver microsomal total lipids as was found in the mitochondria. Hypothyroid rats, when killed 6 hr after injection of [1‐14C] labeled linoleate, showed the following abnormalities: the liver incorporated less label into lipids, and converted 18∶2 not exclusively to 20∶4 (as normals do) but instead incorporated the label mainly into saturated fatty acids. These data, together with the known decrease in β‐oxidation, suggest that hypothyroidism involves possible defective step(s) in the conversion of 18∶2 to 20∶4.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/142296/1/lipd0328.pd

Interactions of melatonin with mammalian mitochondria. Reducer of energy capacity and amplifier of permeability transition.

Melatonin, a metabolic product of the amino acid tryptophan, induces a dose-dependent energy drop correlated with a decrease in the oxidative phosphorylation process in isolated rat liver mitochondria. This effect involves a gradual decrease in the respiratory control index and significant alterations in the state 4/state 3 transition of membrane potential (ΔΨ). Melatonin, alone, does not affect the insulating properties of the inner membrane but, in the presence of supraphysiological Ca2+, induces a ΔΨ drop and colloid-osmotic mitochondrial swelling. These events are sensitive to cyclosporin A and the inhibitors of Ca2+ transport, indicative of the induction or amplification of the mitochondrial permeability transition. This phenomenon is triggered by oxidative stress induced by melatonin and Ca2+, with the generation of hydrogen peroxide and the consequent oxidation of sulfydryl groups, glutathione and pyridine nucleotides. In addition, melatonin, again in the presence of Ca2+, can also induce substantial release of cytochrome C and AIF (apoptosis-inducing factor), thus revealing its potential as a pro-apoptotic agent

Public-private partnerships and the politics of alcohol policy in England : the Coalition Government's Public Health 'Responsibility Deal'

BACKGROUND: The 2010-2015 Conservative-led Coalition Government launched their flagship Public Health Responsibility Deal (PHRD) for England in 2011; a year before their alcohol strategy. This co-regulatory regime placed alcohol industry actors at the heart of policy-making, but was viewed with scepticism by public health actors. This article examines the ways in which the PHRD structured the alcohol policy environment throughout this period, which included the rejection of evidence-based policies such as minimum unit pricing. METHODS: This article draws on 26 semi-structured interviews with policy actors (parliamentarians, civil servants, civil society actors and academics) in 2018. Respondents were identified and recruited using purposive sampling. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using thematic coding. RESULTS: The PHRD shaped the context of alcohol policy development at Westminster throughout this period. It circumscribed the policy space by taking evidence-based measures not amenable to industry partnership off the agenda. While the PHRD created important opportunities for industry engagement with policy-makers, it undermined public health actors' access to government, particularly following their withdrawal from the process. Moreover, the PHRD demonstrates the enduring appeal of partnership as a policy idea for governments, despite a lack of evidence of their effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS: This study of the PHRD demonstrates the ways in which industry actors are able to influence policy through long-term relationship building and partnership working on policy decision-making. Whilst such partnership approaches may appear to have the potential to mitigate some of alcohol harms, they create fundamental conflicts of interest, and may undermine the very causes they seek to further