Taxonomic investigation of the zooplanktivorous Lake Malawi cichlids Copadichromis mloto (Iles) and C. virginalis (Iles)

The taxonomic status of the zooplanktivorous cichlids Copadichromis mloto and C. virginalis has been confused since their original descriptions by lles in 1960. Whilst two forms of C. virginalis, ‘Kaduna’ and ‘Kajose’, were distinguished in the type material, C. mloto has not been positively identified since its original description. Here we re-examined the types as well as 54 recently collected specimens from multiple sampling locations. Genome sequencing of 51 recent specimens revealed two closely related but reciprocally monophyletic clades. Geometric morphological analysis indicated that one clade morphologically encompasses the type specimens of C. virginalis identified by Iles as the Kaduna form, including the holotype, whilst the other clade encompasses not only the paratypes identified as the Kajose form, but also the type series of C. mloto. Given that all three forms in Iles’s type series are from the same locality, that there are no meristic or character states to differentiate them and that there are no records of adult male C. mloto in breeding colours, we conclude that the Kajose form previously identified as C. virginalis represents relatively deeper bodied sexually active or maturing individuals of C. mloto

The Dutch Healthy Diet index (DHD-index): an instrument to measure adherence to the Dutch Guidelines for a Healthy diet

Background The objective was to develop an index based on the Dutch guidelines for a healthy diet of 2006 that reflects dietary quality and to apply it to the Dutch National Food Consumption Survey (DNFCS) to examine the assocations with the micronutrient intakes. Methods A total of 749 men and women, aged 19-30 years, contributed two 24-hour recalls and additional questionnaires in the DNFCS of 2003. The Dutch Healthy Diet index (DHD-index) includes ten components representing the ten Dutch Guidelines for a Healthy Diet. Per component the score ranges between zero and ten, resulting in a total score between zero (no adherence) and 100 (complete adherence). Results The mean+/-SD of the DHD-index was 60.4 +/-11.5 for women and 57.8 +/-10.8 for men (P for difference = 0.002). Each component score increased across the sex-specific quintiles of the DHD-index. An inverse association was observed between the sex-specific quintiles of the DHD-index and total energy intake. Calcium, Riboflavin, and vitamin E intake decreased with increasing DHD-index, an inverse association which disappeared after energy adjustment. Vitamin C showed a positive association across quintiles, also when adjusted for energy. For folate, iron, magnesium, potassium, thiamin, and vitamin B6 a positive association emerged after adjustment for energy. Conclusions The DHD-index is capable of ranking participants according to their adherence to the Dutch Guidelines for a Healthy Diet by reflecting variation in nine out of ten components that constitute when based on two 24-hour recalls. Furthermore, the index showed to be a good measure of nutrient density of diet

Loneliness literacy scale; development and evaluation of an early indicator for loneliness prevention

To develop and evaluate the Loneliness Literacy Scale for the assessment of short-term outcomes of a loneliness prevention programme among Dutch elderly persons. Scale development was based on evidence from literature and experiences from local stakeholders and representatives of the target group. The scale was pre-tested among 303 elderly persons aged 65 years and over. Principal component analysis and internal consistency analysis were used to affirm the scale structure, reduce the number of items and assess the reliability of the constructs. Linear regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the association between the literacy constructs and loneliness. The four constructs “motivation”, “self-efficacy”, “perceived social support” and “subjective norm” derived from principal component analysis captured 56 % of the original variance. Cronbach’s coefficient a was above 0.7 for each construct. The constructs “self-efficacy” and “perceived social support” were positively and “subjective norm” was negatively associated with loneliness. To our knowledge this is the first study developing a short-term indicator for loneliness prevention. The indicator contributes to the need of evaluating public health interventions more close to the intervention activities

The best of both worlds: combining lineage specific and universal bait sets in target-enrichment hybridization reactions

PREMISE: Researchers adopting target-enrichment approaches often struggle with the decision of whether to use universal or lineage-specific probe sets. To circumvent this quandary, we investigate the efficacy of a simultaneous enrichment by combining universal probes and lineage-specific probes in a single hybridization reaction, to benefit from the qualities of both probe sets with little added cost or effort.METHODS AND RESULTS: Using 26 Brassicaceae libraries and standard enrichment protocols, we compare results from three independent data sets. A large average fraction of reads mapping to the Angiosperms353 (24–31%) and Brassicaceae (35–59%) targets resulted in a sizable reconstruction of loci for each target set (x̄ ≥ 70%).CONCLUSIONS: High levels of enrichment and locus reconstruction for the two target sets demonstrate that the sampling of genomic regions can be easily extended through the combination of probe sets in single enrichment reactions. We hope that these findings will facilitate the production of expanded data sets that answer individual research questions and simultaneously allow wider applications by the research community as a whole.NaturalisPlant science

Search for squarks and gluinos in events with isolated leptons, jets and missing transverse momentum at s√=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for supersymmetry in final states containing at least one isolated lepton (electron or muon), jets and large missing transverse momentum with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider are reported. The search is based on proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy s√=8 TeV collected in 2012, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 fb−1. No significant excess above the Standard Model expectation is observed. Limits are set on supersymmetric particle masses for various supersymmetric models. Depending on the model, the search excludes gluino masses up to 1.32 TeV and squark masses up to 840 GeV. Limits are also set on the parameters of a minimal universal extra dimension model, excluding a compactification radius of 1/R c = 950 GeV for a cut-off scale times radius (ΛR c) of approximately 30

Single hadron response measurement and calorimeter jet energy scale uncertainty with the ATLAS detector at the LHC

The uncertainty on the calorimeter energy response to jets of particles is derived for the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). First, the calorimeter response to single isolated charged hadrons is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo simulation using proton-proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of sqrt(s) = 900 GeV and 7 TeV collected during 2009 and 2010. Then, using the decay of K_s and Lambda particles, the calorimeter response to specific types of particles (positively and negatively charged pions, protons, and anti-protons) is measured and compared to the Monte Carlo predictions. Finally, the jet energy scale uncertainty is determined by propagating the response uncertainty for single charged and neutral particles to jets. The response uncertainty is 2-5% for central isolated hadrons and 1-3% for the final calorimeter jet energy scale.Comment: 24 pages plus author list (36 pages total), 23 figures, 1 table, submitted to European Physical Journal

Measurements of fiducial and differential cross sections for Higgs boson production in the diphoton decay channel at s√=8 TeV with ATLAS

Measurements of fiducial and differential cross sections are presented for Higgs boson production in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of s√=8 TeV. The analysis is performed in the H → γγ decay channel using 20.3 fb−1 of data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The signal is extracted using a fit to the diphoton invariant mass spectrum assuming that the width of the resonance is much smaller than the experimental resolution. The signal yields are corrected for the effects of detector inefficiency and resolution. The pp → H → γγ fiducial cross section is measured to be 43.2 ±9.4(stat.) − 2.9 + 3.2 (syst.) ±1.2(lumi)fb for a Higgs boson of mass 125.4GeV decaying to two isolated photons that have transverse momentum greater than 35% and 25% of the diphoton invariant mass and each with absolute pseudorapidity less than 2.37. Four additional fiducial cross sections and two cross-section limits are presented in phase space regions that test the theoretical modelling of different Higgs boson production mechanisms, or are sensitive to physics beyond the Standard Model. Differential cross sections are also presented, as a function of variables related to the diphoton kinematics and the jet activity produced in the Higgs boson events. The observed spectra are statistically limited but broadly in line with the theoretical expectations

Measurement of χ c1 and χ c2 production with s√ = 7 TeV pp collisions at ATLAS

The prompt and non-prompt production cross-sections for the χ c1 and χ c2 charmonium states are measured in pp collisions at s√ = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC using 4.5 fb−1 of integrated luminosity. The χ c states are reconstructed through the radiative decay χ c → J/ψγ (with J/ψ → μ + μ −) where photons are reconstructed from γ → e + e − conversions. The production rate of the χ c2 state relative to the χ c1 state is measured for prompt and non-prompt χ c as a function of J/ψ transverse momentum. The prompt χ c cross-sections are combined with existing measurements of prompt J/ψ production to derive the fraction of prompt J/ψ produced in feed-down from χ c decays. The fractions of χ c1 and χ c2 produced in b-hadron decays are also measured