Context-dependency in carnivore co-occurrence across a multi-use conservation landscape

This research was funded by South Africa's National Research Foundation (UID: 107099 and 115040), African Institute for Conservation Ecology, National Geographic Society (EC-314R-18) and Wild Tomorrow Fund. G.C.-S. and M.S.-R. were funded by Fundacão para a Ciência e a Tecnologia in the frame of a doctoral grant (PD/BD/114037/2015) and the research unit (UID/BIA/00329/2019), respectively.Carnivore intraguild dynamics depend on a complex interplay of environmental affinities and interspecific interactions. Context-dependency is commonly expected with varying suites of interacting species and environmental conditions but seldom empirically described. In South Africa, decentralized approaches to conservation and the resulting multi-tenure conservation landscapes have markedly altered the environmental stage that shapes the structure of local carnivore assemblages. We explored assemblage-wide patterns of carnivore spatial (residual occupancy probability) and temporal (diel activity overlap) co-occurrence across three adjacent wildlife-oriented management contexts?a provincial protected area, a private ecotourism reserve, and commercial game ranches. We found that carnivores were generally distributed independently across space, but existing spatial dependencies were context-specific. Spatial overlap was most common in the protected area, where species occur at higher relative abundances, and in game ranches, where predator persecution presumably narrows the scope for spatial asymmetries. In the private reserve, spatial co-occurrence patterns were more heterogeneous but did not follow a dominance hierarchy associated with higher apex predator densities. Pair-specific variability suggests that subordinate carnivores may alternate between pre-emptive behavioral strategies and fine-scale co-occurrence with dominant competitors. Consistency in species-pairs diel activity asynchrony suggested that temporal overlap patterns in our study areas mostly depend on species' endogenous clock rather than the local context. Collectively, our research highlights the complexity and context-dependency of guild-level implications of current management and conservation paradigms; specifically, the unheeded potential for interventions to influence the local network of carnivore interactions with unknown population-level and cascading effects.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

A development cooperation Erasmus Mundus partnership for capacity building in earthquake mitigation science and higher education

Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on capitalization on policies, on technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to strengthening technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programs. EUNICE is a European Commission funded higher education partnership for international development cooperation with the objective to build capacity of individuals who will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project involves five European Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on seismic mitigation, disaster risk management and international development. The project consists of a comprehensive mobility scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka who plan to enroll in school or conduct research at one of five European partner universities in Italy, Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being involved in scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels. Researchers, future policymakers and practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of earthquake engineering, seismology, disaster risk management and urban planning

EU-NICE, Eurasian University Network for International Cooperation in Earthquakes

Despite the remarkable scientific advancements of earthquake engineering and seismology in many countries, seismic risk is still growing at a high rate in the world’s most vulnerable communities. Successful practices have shown that a community’s capacity to manage and reduce its seismic risk relies on capitalization on policies, on technology and research results. An important role is played by education, than contribute to strengthening technical curricula of future practitioners and researchers through university and higher education programmes. In recent years an increasing number of initiatives have been launched in this field at the international and global cooperation level. Cooperative international academic research and training is key to reducing the gap between advanced and more vulnerable regions. EU-NICE is a European Commission funded higher education partnership for international development cooperation with the objective to build capacity of individuals who will operate at institutions located in seismic prone Asian Countries. The project involves five European Universities, eight Asian universities and four associations and NGOs active in advanced research on seismic mitigation, disaster risk management and international development. The project consists of a comprehensive mobility scheme open to nationals from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, North Korea, Philippines, and Sri Lanka who plan to enrol in school or conduct research at one of five European partner universities in Italy, Greece and Portugal. During the 2010-14 time span a total number of 104 mobilities are being involved in scientific activities at the undergraduate, masters, PhD, postdoctoral and academic-staff exchange levels. This high number of mobilities and activities is selected and designed so as to produce an overall increase of knowledge that can result in an impact on earthquake mitigation. Researchers, future policymakers and practitioners build up their curricula over a range of disciplines in the fields of engineering, seismology, disaster risk management and urban planning. Specific educational and research activities focus on earthquake risk mitigation related topics such as: anti-seismic structural design, structural engineering, advanced computer structural collapse analysis, seismology, experimental laboratory studies, international and development issues in disaster risk management, social-economical impact studies, international relations and conflict resolution

Surface patterning of carbon nanotubes can enhance their penetration through a phospholipid bilayer

Nanotube patterning may occur naturally upon the spontaneous self-assembly of biomolecules onto the surface of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). It results in periodically alternating bands of surface properties, ranging from relatively hydrophilic to hydrophobic, along the axis of the nanotube. Single Chain Mean Field (SCMF) theory has been used to estimate the free energy of systems in which a surface patterned nanotube penetrates a phospholipid bilayer. In contrast to un-patterned nanotubes with uniform surface properties, certain patterned nanotubes have been identified that display a relatively low and approximately constant system free energy (10 kT) as the nanotube traverses through the bilayer. These observations support the hypothesis that the spontaneous self-assembly of bio-molecules on the surface of SWNTs may facilitate nanotube transduction through cell membranes.Comment: Published in ACS Nano http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/nn102763

Intrinsic Programming of Alveolar Macrophages for Protective Antifungal Innate Immunity Against Pneumocystis Infection

Invasive fungal infections, including Pneumocystis Pneumonia (PcP), remain frequent life-threatening conditions of patients with adaptive immune defects. While innate immunity helps control pathogen growth early during infection, it is typically not sufficient for complete protection against Pneumocystis and other human fungal pathogens. Alveolar macrophages (AM) possess pattern recognition molecules capable of recognizing antigenic and structural determinants of Pneumocystis. However, this pathogen effectively evades innate immunity to infect both immunocompetent and immunosuppressed hosts, albeit with differing outcomes. During our studies of mouse models of PcP, the FVB/N strain was identified as unique because of its ability to mount a protective innate immune response against Pneumocystis infection. In contrast to other immunocompetent strains, which become transiently infected prior to the onset of adaptive immunity, FVB/N mice rapidly eradicated Pneumocystis before an adaptive immune response was triggered. Furthermore, FVB/N mice remained highly resistant to infection even in the absence of functional T cells. The effector mechanism of innate protection required the action of functional alveolar macrophages, and the adoptive transfer of resistant FVB/N AMs, but not susceptible CB.17 AMs, conferred protection to immunodeficient mice. Macrophage IFNγ receptor signaling was not required for innate resistance, and FVB/N macrophages were found to display markers of alternative activation. IFNγ reprogrammed resistant FVB/N macrophages to a permissive M1 biased phenotype through a mechanism that required direct activation of the macrophage IFNγR. These results demonstrate that appropriately programmed macrophages provide protective innate immunity against this opportunistic fungal pathogen, and suggest that modulating macrophage function may represent a feasible therapeutic strategy to enhance antifungal host defense. The identification of resistant and susceptible macrophages provides a novel platform to study not only the mechanisms of macrophage-mediated antifungal defense, but also the mechanisms by which Pneumocystis evades innate immunity

What predicts change in pulmonary function and quality of life in asthma or COPD ?

Information about predictors of decline in pulmonary function (forced expiratory volume in 1 second [FE

Steel-based applications in earthquake-prone areas

Steel-Earth project aims at distributing among technicians, engineers, design companies and standardization bodies the results of three past RFCS projects (Steel-Retro [3], Opus [2] and PrecaSteel [1]), providing useful tools for the design and for the retrofit of existing buildings. Technical documents and practical applications to case studies, regarding design of steel and composite steel/concrete buildings and innovative steel-based techniques for the retrofit of existing r.c. and masonry constructions, have been elaborated and collected into a volume distributed during the final workshop of the dissemination project. Pre-normative and background documents concerning the design of steel and composite structures and the rehabilitation of existing constructions have been prepared. A lot of attention has been paid to the analysis of the influence of overstrength factors on the seismic design of steel and composite structures. The prepared documents have been distributed to the attending people and to the members of WG 2 (CEN/TC 250/SC 8/WG 2 “Steel and Composite Structures”) during the final workshop of the project. Technical sheets, working examples and background documents have been translated into several languages (German, French, Italian, Romanian and Greek) and are free available on the website of the project (https://www.steelconstruct.com/site/), where information regarding Steel-Earth are also presented.11 Workshops in Italy, Greece, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Spain and Romania and 5 conferences in Emilia-Romagna have been organized, as well as 2 practical courses for engineers and academic people in Pavia (Italy). Flash-drives with the technical documents and applications elaborated in Steel-Earth have been distributed to the attending people

Comparación en los resultados de pacientes con bronquiolitis manejados con dos diferentes métodos de administrar oxígeno. Informe preliminar de avance del Hospital General de Niños Dr. Pedro de Elizalde

Introducción: La oxigenoterapia en el tratamiento de niños con bronquiolitis puede ser administrada mediantes cánulas nasales con bajo o alto flujo (CNAF). Las CNAF podrían ser una alternativa a la ventilación no invasiva, requiriendo menos recursos que los cuidados intensivos (UCIP). Objetivo: Evaluar si existe diferencia en la proporción de sujetos hospitalizados por bronquiolitis que requiere UCIP o en la duración de su hospitalización, según oxigenoterapia (convencional o CNAF). Métodos: Estudio observacional incluyendo lactantes hospitalizados por bronquiolitis en los meses de junio a agosto de 2017. Los pacientes fueron tratados según el servicio donde se encontraban (las unidades 1, 2 y 3 con oxigenoterapia convencional, y las unidades 4 y 5 con CNAF), al que fueron asignados según disponibilidad de cama. Resultados: Se incluyeron 329 pacientes, con edad promedio de 7,2 meses, que permanecieron hospitalizados 5,9 días y recibieron 4,6 días de oxigenoterapia. Todos recibieron oxigenoterapia, 84 (25,5%) CNAF y 245 (74,5%) convencional. Sólo 10 (3,1%) requirieron UCIP. De los que ingresaron a UCIP 5/84 recibieron CNAF y 5/245 recibieron terapia convencional (OR: 3,1; IC 95%: 0,8-10,7; p=0,07). Los pacientes con CNAF permanecieron significativamente más tiempo hospitalizados (6,9 ± 3,9 días vs. 5,6 ±3,2; p=0,003), luego de controlar por edad, la etiología viral y requerimiento de UCIP. Conclusión: En la población analizada no se observó diferencia en la proporción de pacientes que requirieron UTIP según hubieran recibido oxigenoterapia por CNAF o en forma convencional.Background: Oxygen in bronchiolitis treatment can be delivered by nasal cannulas using low or high flow (HFNC). HFNC can be an alternative to non-invasive ventilation or intensive care (PICU). Objective: To evaluate PICU requirement and length of stay (LOS) according to oxygen delivery method in children hospitalized for bronchiolitis. Methods: Observational study including infants hospitalized for bronchiolitis from June to August 2017. Patients received oxygen based on to the unit in which they were hospitalized (units 1, 2 and 3 received conventional oxygen therapy, while units 4 and 5 received HFNC), assigned according to bed availability. Results: We included 329 patients, aged 7.2 months, with a LOS of 5.9 days, and receiving oxygen for 4.6 days. All of them received oxygen, 84 (25.5%) HFNC and 245 (74,5%) conventional therapy. Only 10 (3.1%) required PICU, 5 using HFNC and 5 on conventional therapy (OR: 3,1; 95%IC: 0.8-10.7; p=0.07). After controlling for age, viral etiology and PICU requirement, patients on HFNC showed a significantly longer LOS (6.9 ± 3.9 vs. 5.6 ± 3.2 days; p=0.003). Conclusion: Patients who received oxygen trough HFNC required PICU less frequently than those in conventional therapy but showed a longer length of stay.Fil: Potasnik, J.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Golubicki, A.. Ministerio de Salud de la Nación; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez, A.. Gobierno de la Ciudad Autonoma de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Agudos Carlos Durand.; ArgentinaFil: Raiden, Silvina Claudia. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay; ArgentinaFil: Sosa, R.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Gonzalez, N.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Cairoli, H.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: De Lillo, L.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Sanluis Fenelli, G.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Planovsky, H.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Checacci, E.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Lopez, M.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Gigliotti, E.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Torres, F.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); ArgentinaFil: Ferrero, F.. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital General de Niños Pedro Elizalde (ex Casa Cuna); Argentin

Pneumocystis cell wall β-glucan stimulates calcium-dependent signaling of IL-8 secretion by human airway epithelial cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Respiratory failure secondary to alveolar inflammation during <it>Pneumocystis </it>pneumonia is a major cause of death in immunocompromised patients. Neutrophil infiltration in the lung of patients with <it>Pneumocystis </it>infection predicts severity of the infection and death. Several previous studies indicate that airway epithelial cells release the neutrophil chemoattractant proteins, MIP-2 (rodents) and IL-8 (humans), in response to <it>Pneumocystis </it>and purified <it>Pneumocystis </it>cell wall β-glucans (PCBG) through the NF-κB-dependent pathway. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms that are involved in the activation of airway epithelium cells by PCBG resulting in the secretion of IL-8.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>To address this, we have studied the activation of different calcium-dependent mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in 1HAEo^-cells, a human airway epithelial cell line.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our data provide evidence that PCBG induces phosphorylation of the MAPKs, ERK, and p38, the activation of NF-κB and the subsequently secretion of IL-8 in a calcium-dependent manner. Further, we evaluated the role of glycosphingolipids as possible receptors for β-glucans in human airway epithelial cells. Preincubation of the cells with D-<it>threo</it>-1-phenyl-2-decanoylamino-3-morpholino-1-propanol (PDMP) a potent inhibitor of the glycosphingolipids synthesis, prior to PCBG stimulation, significantly decreased IL-8 production.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These data indicate that PCBG activates calcium dependent MAPK signaling resulting in the release of IL-8 in a process that requires glycosphingolipid for optimal signaling.</p