Identifying sequence variation in cation channel sperm associated genes in Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra)

The Cape mountain zebra (Equus zebra zebra) has recovered from near extinction over more than eight decades. While their numbers have increased, populations remain isolated with low genetic diversity. With more than 75 new populations being founded and more than 4800 extant animals, conservation management strategies are being implemented to mitigate risk of losses in genetic diversity and reproductive fitness. One objective is to identify reproductive characteristics that may improve population growth. Cation channel sperm (CatSper) genes play an important role in hyperactivation of sperm during fertilization. Mutations in these genes lead to reduced fertility and even infertility. Ten male zebras were sampled from a group that were translocated in 2016 in order to found a new population. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in three of the CatSper genes (1 - 3). Lack of variation was observed in all exons, with only four SNPs being identified in the intronic regions in close proximity to exons 1, 2, 7, 8, and 9 of CatSper 1. These results may contribute to the pre-identification of males for new founder populations to ensure population growth and viability, and may be a useful tool for selection against low-producing individuals

“Closing the door on protection? Exploring the impact of lockdown upon children and young people’s services in the UK”.

Purpose: The article uses two case studies to explore the impact of repeated lockdowns upon the delivery of child protection and youth offending services in the UK. Design/methodology/approach: The article draws upon two in-depth interviews - drawn from a global mixed-methods project on the Covid-19 pandemic - with a Child Protection Officer in the North West and a Youth Offending Worker from the West Midlands. Findings: The two case studies demonstrate that already-austerity hit Children’s and Young People’s services moved almost all their service delivery online, preventing frontline child practitioners and youth offending workers from properly assessing, monitoring, and supporting vulnerable children and young people. In both case studies, the participants claim that repeated lockdowns have done irreversible damage to their client relationships; jeopardised potential progress out of vulnerable situations; and heightened risks for many of their client group. Notwithstanding, these two workers faced pressure to adhere to both the Covid-19 regulations and health and safety protocols. While our participants felt this affected the quality of their engagement with young people, they aired frustrations at other colleagues who, they suggested, appeared ‘content’ to have minimal contact with their client group. Nevertheless, the two workers demonstrated admirable resilience as they strove to deliver essential support to their clients. In a climate of local authority debt, school closures and further challenges to information sharing because of the pandemic, these two workers doubt support systems will return to pre-Covid standards and expect online working to continue, to the detriment of vulnerable children and young people. Essentially, these two examples indicate how Covid-19 measures close the door on protecting vulnerable children and young people. Originality: The article builds upon the emerging empirical evidence on how lockdowns have impacted children and young people’s services. Practical implications: The limited yet detailed findings potentially highlight important deficits in the social care sector in general. Social implications: Though ungeneralizable, we suggest our participants’ experiences might be replicated in some other child protection and youth offending services across the UK

Suicide cases investigated at the state mortuary in Bloemfontein, 2003–2007

Background: Up to 8 000 South Africans commit suicide annually. This study aimed to investigate the profile of suicide cases in Bloemfontein and the southern Free State province.Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was performed. Suicides in the Bloemfontein and southern Free State areas (Xhariep and Motheo districts) investigated at the state mortuary in Bloemfontein in 2003 to 2007 were included. Data were collected retrospectively by using a specially designed data-capturing form.Results: A total of 469 suicide cases were included in the study. The estimated suicide rate for this part of the Free State province was 10.9/100 000 of the population per year. The majority (82.1%) of the victims were men. In total, 338 (72.1%) of the victims were black, 122 (26.0%) were white, five (1.1%) were coloured and three (0.6%) were Indian. The most common methods were hanging (262; 55.9%), shooting (99; 21.1%) and overdosing on pills (43; 9.2%). Most cases (57.8%) occurred in victims 21 to 40 years of age. Five (1.1%) victims were children younger than 11 years of age, while 12 (2.6%) were older than 65 years. More than half (267 cases; 56.9%) of the suicide victims were unemployed. The majority(43.1%) of suicides occurred in January to April of each year, with the highest incidence (67 cases; 14.3%) in January. Conclusion: The rate of suicide and the profile of victims with regard to the variables investigated corresponded to findings reported from other studies. The information obtained could make a meaningful contribution to suicide-preventionprogrammes.Keywords: suicide; profile; rate; prevention; Free State Provinc

Shell Structures and Chaos in Deformed Nuclei and Large Metallic Clusters

A reflection-asymmetric deformed oscillator potential is analysed from the classical and quantum mechanical point of view. The connection between occurrence of shell structures and classical periodic orbits is studied using the ''removal of resonances method'' in a classical analysis. In this approximation, the effective single particle potential becomes separable and the frequencies of the classical trajectories are easily determined. It turns out that the winding numbers calculated in this way are in good agreement with the ones found from the corresponding quantum mechanical spectrum using the particle number dependence of the fluctuating part of the total energy. When the octupole term is switched on it is found that prolate shapes are stable against chaos whereas spherical and oblate cases become chaotic. An attempt is made to explain this difference in the quantum mechanical context by looking at the distribution of exceptional points which results from the matrix structure of the respective Hamiltonians. In a similar way we analyse the modified Nilsson model and discuss its consequences for nuclei and metallic clusters.Comment: to appear in Physica Scripta., CNLS-94-02, a talk given at the Nobel sponsored conference SELMA 94 "New Nuclear Phenomena in the Vicinity of Closed Shell" (Stockholm and Uppsala, 29 Aug.- 3 Sept. 1994

A critique of the Global Pact for the Environment: A stillborn initiative or the foundation for Lex Anthropocenae?

In May 2018 the process which may ultimately lead to the negotiation of a legally binding Global Pact for the Environment formally commenced under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly. Expectations for the Pact are high, evidenced in particular by its multiple and overlapping objectives: to serve as a generic binding instrument of international environmental law (IEL) principles ; to integrate, consolidate, unify and ultimately entrench many of the fragmented principles of IEL; and to constitute the first global environmental human rights instrument. In the wake of the impending intergovernmental process, the paper offers a thorough critique of the draft Pact in its present iteration. We do so with the aim of evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the present draft Pact by interrogating: a) its diplomatic and symbolic relevance and possible unique contribution at the policy level to global environmental law and governance; and b) its potential at the operational level of IEL and global environmental governance, focusing on the extent to which the draft Pact accommodates both existing and more recent rules and principles for environmental protection. As the Pact’s primary ambition is to become a universally binding global treaty, it would be churlish not to recognise its potential for innovation, as well as the considerable opportunity that the negotiation of the Pact will have to generate broad-sweeping and positive impacts. However, our central thesis is that only if the Global Pact were to incorporate ambitious normative provisions to strengthen those public and private global governance efforts that aim to halt the deterioration of Earth system integrity, as well as to maintain and improve integrity, will it be able to offer a firm foundation of the type of Anthropocene Law, termed here as the Lex Anthropocenae, required to confront head-on the deep socio-ecological crisis of the Anthropocene

[89Zr]Oxinate4 for long-term in vivo cell tracking by positron emission tomography

Purpose 111In (typically as [111In]oxinate3) is a gold standard radiolabel for cell tracking in humans by scintigraphy. A long half-life positron-emitting radiolabel to serve the same purpose using positron emission tomography (PET) has long been sought. We aimed to develop an 89Zr PET tracer for cell labelling and compare it with [111In]oxinate3 single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Methods [89Zr]Oxinate4 was synthesised and its uptake and efflux were measured in vitro in three cell lines and in human leukocytes. The in vivo biodistribution of eGFP-5T33 murine myeloma cells labelled using [89Zr]oxinate4 or [111In]oxinate3 was monitored for up to 14 days. 89Zr retention by living radiolabelled eGFP-positive cells in vivo was monitored by FACS sorting of liver, spleen and bone marrow cells followed by gamma counting. Results Zr labelling was effective in all cell types with yields comparable with 111In labelling. Retention of 89Zr in cells in vitro after 24 h was significantly better (range 71 to >90 %) than 111In (43–52 %). eGFP-5T33 cells in vivo showed the same early biodistribution whether labelled with 111In or 89Zr (initial pulmonary accumulation followed by migration to liver, spleen and bone marrow), but later translocation of radioactivity to kidneys was much greater for 111In. In liver, spleen and bone marrow at least 92 % of 89Zr remained associated with eGFP-positive cells after 7 days in vivo. Conclusion [89Zr]Oxinate4 offers a potential solution to the emerging need for a long half-life PET tracer for cell tracking in vivo and deserves further evaluation of its effects on survival and behaviour of different cell types

From "Infant Hercules" to "Ghost Town":Industrial collapse and social harm on Teesside

This article explicates the harms associated with deindustrialization in Teesside in the North East of England in the context of neoliberalism. Drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews (n = 25), the article explores how ongoing industrial collapse, typified by Sahaviriya Steel Industries’ (SSI) closure in 2015, has generated various harms. First, the article examines industrialism’s socioeconomic security and stability. It then explores the negative impact of SSI’s closure in 2015, including a sense of loss and unemployment. Next, it demonstrates how the absence of economic stability produces harmful outcomes, namely insecurity, mental health problems and bleak visions of the future. The article concludes by casting industrial ruination as an impediment to human flourishing; the normal functioning of capitalism represents a “negative motivation to harm” that prevents the stability and security necessary for individual and collective flourishin

Postoperative mortality and complications in patients with and without pre‐operative SARS‐CoV‐2 infection: a service evaluation of 24 million linked records using OpenSAFELY

Surgical decision-making after SARS-CoV-2 infection is influenced by the presence of comorbidity, infection severity and whether the surgical problem is time-sensitive. Contemporary surgical policy to delay surgery is informed by highly heterogeneous country-specific guidance. We evaluated surgical provision in England during the COVID-19 pandemic to assess real-world practice and whether deferral remains necessary. Using the OpenSAFELY platform, we adapted the COVIDSurg protocol for a service evaluation of surgical procedures that took place within the English NHS from 17 March 2018 to 17 March 2022. We assessed whether hospitals adhered to guidance not to operate on patients within 7 weeks of an indication of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Additional outcomes were postoperative all-cause mortality (30 days, 6 months) and complications (pulmonary, cardiac, cerebrovascular). The exposure was the interval between the most recent indication of SARS-CoV-2 infection and subsequent surgery. In any 6-month window, < 3% of surgical procedures were conducted within 7 weeks of an indication of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mortality for surgery conducted within 2 weeks of a positive test in the era since widespread SARS-CoV-2 vaccine availability was 1.1%, declining to 0.3% by 4 weeks. Compared with the COVIDSurg study cohort, outcomes for patients in the English NHS cohort were better during the COVIDSurg data collection period and the pandemic era before vaccines became available. Clinicians within the English NHS followed national guidance by operating on very few patients within 7 weeks of a positive indication of SARS-CoV-2 infection. In England, surgical patients' overall risk following an indication of SARS-CoV-2 infection is lower than previously thought

The planetary commons: A new paradigm for safeguarding Earth-regulating systems in the Anthropocene

The Anthropocene signifies the start of a no-analogue trajectory of the Earth system that is fundamentally different from the Holocene. This new trajectory is characterized by rising risks of triggering irreversible and unmanageable shifts in Earth system functioning. We urgently need a new global approach to safeguard critical Earth system regulating functions more effectively and comprehensively. The global commons framework is the closest example of an existing approach with the aim of governing biophysical systems on Earth upon which the world collectively depends. Derived during stable Holocene conditions, the global commons framework must now evolve in the light of new Anthropocene dynamics. This requires a fundamental shift from a focus only on governing shared resources beyond national jurisdiction, to one that secures critical functions of the Earth system irrespective of national boundaries. We propose a new framework—the planetary commons—which differs from the global commons framework by including not only globally shared geographic regions but also critical biophysical systems that regulate the resilience and state, and therefore livability, on Earth. The new planetary commons should articulate and create comprehensive stewardship obligations through Earth system governance aimed at restoring and strengthening planetary resilience and justice

Environmental harm and environmental victims: scoping out a ‘green victimology'

In this paper I intend to discuss the adaptability of victimological study to the question of ‘environmental victimisation’. The impact on those affected by environment crime, or other environmentally damaging activities, is one that has received scarce attention in the mainstream victimological literature (see Williams, 1996). The role or position of such victims in criminal justice and/or other processes has likewise rarely been topic of academic debate. I have recently expanded upon various aspects of this subject and surrounding issues at greater length (Hall, 2013) but for the purposes of this article I wish to expand specifically on what a so-called ‘green victimology’ might look like, together with some of the particular questions and challenges it will face