Prescribed Browsing by Goats Shows Promise in Controlling Multiflora Rose in a Deciduous Forest at the Erie National Wildlife Refuge in Northwestern Pennsylvania

Multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora [MFR]) is an invasive, nonnative plant that has invaded many temperate forests across the eastern United States, often outcompeting native plants for sunlight and other resources. Herbicides can control MFR, but they can also reduce nontarget plant species and threaten aquatic ecosystems. In a black cherry-red maple forest in the Erie National Wildlife Refuge in Pennsylvania, the US Fish and Wildlife Service introduced prescribed goat-browsing as an exploratory control method. In four treatments, browsed, browsed/herbicide, cut/herbicide, and an unmanaged reference, we evaluated preliminary effects of these treatments on MFR and non-MFR herbaceous vegetation. For MFR, the browsed treatment had 56% lower leaf/stem mass ratios and 35% shorter stem lengths than the reference; the leaf/stem ratio in the cut/herbicide treatment was 55% lower than the reference. Stem density was not reduced because goats did not kill the MFR plants in this first year of treatment. The herbicide treatment had fewer non-MFR plants than the reference treatment. Light levels at ground level did not differ among the treatments. Overall, 33% of trees in the browsed treatment were affected by the goats, with 9% being completely girdled; red maple and ironwood were the most commonly browsed species. Preliminary results suggest that goats can be an effective control for MFR, however long-term success will be best evaluated after consecutive treatment seasons. Goats may increase tree mortality and shift tree species composition in stands dominated by trees with high browsing rates, but effects on diverse stands may be less pronounced.Published articl

Electrical half-wave rectification at ferroelectric domain walls

Ferroelectric domain walls represent multifunctional 2D-elements with great potential for novel device paradigms at the nanoscale. Improper ferroelectrics display particularly promising types of domain walls, which, due to their unique robustness, are the ideal template for imposing specific electronic behavior. Chemical doping, for instance, induces p- or n-type characteristics and electric fields reversibly switch between resistive and conductive domain-wall states. Here, we demonstrate diode-like conversion of alternating-current (AC) into direct-current (DC) output based on neutral 180$^{\circ}$ domain walls in improper ferroelectric ErMnO$_3$. By combining scanning probe and dielectric spectroscopy, we show that the rectification occurs for frequencies at which the domain walls are fixed to their equilibrium position. The practical frequency regime and magnitude of the output is controlled by the bulk conductivity. Using density functional theory we attribute the transport behavior at the neutral walls to an accumulation of oxygen defects. Our study reveals domain walls acting as 2D half-wave rectifiers, extending domain-wall-based nanoelectronic applications into the realm of AC technology

Integrated genomic approaches implicate osteoglycin (Ogn) in the regulation of left ventricular mass

Left ventricular mass (LVM) and cardiac gene expression are complex traits regulated by factors both intrinsic and extrinsic to the heart. To dissect the major determinants of LVM, we combined expression quantitative trait locus1 and quantitative trait transcript (QTT) analyses of the cardiac transcriptome in the rat. Using these methods and in vitro functional assays, we identified osteoglycin (Ogn) as a major candidate regulator of rat LVM, with increased Ogn protein expression associated with elevated LVM. We also applied genome-wide QTT analysis to the human heart and observed that, out of 22,000 transcripts, OGN transcript abundance had the highest correlation with LVM. We further confirmed a role for Ogn in the in vivo regulation of LVM in Ogn knockout mice. Taken together, these data implicate Ogn as a key regulator of LVM in rats, mice and humans, and suggest that Ogn modifies the hypertrophic response to extrinsic factors such as hypertension and aortic stenosi

Traumatic Brain Injury in School-Age Children: What Do Parents Know?

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has major implications for learning and development. Despite the high number of injuries reported by national statistics, school-age children with TBI are largely underserved in the school setting. Researchers have argued several reasons as to why this discrepancy exists including parental impact. While TBI knowledge has been previously measured in a variety of populations, little has been done to determine what parents of children with TBI understand about the condition. Students with TBI often require additional supports to foster learning; therefore, it is crucial that parents are fully informed about their child’s injury so they can advocate for essential educational services in the school setting. To further this claim, the current study investigated whether parental knowledge impacts the presence of educational supports for their child. Additionally, uncovering inaccuracies regarding TBI will assist in the development of targeted interventions for parents. Participants were recruited from an online research platform called Prolific. A total of 415 parents of school-age children participated in the study. All participants completed a demographic questionnaire and indicated if their child had previously suffered from TBI. If participants endorsed an injury, they were provided an additional questionnaire that inquired about their child’s injury. Ultimately, 360 parents of uninjured children and 55 parents of injured children were included in the analysis. To measure TBI knowledge, all participants completed the Common Misconceptions of TBI (CM-TBI) questionnaire. Independent sample t-tests were conducted to compare group means. For the TBI group, logistic regression was utilized to determine if parental knowledge of TBI predicted the probability that a child received formal educational supports. Results found no differences in TBI knowledge between parents of injured and uninjured children, suggesting that parents of injured children have no additional knowledge of TBI despite their personal experience with the injury. Furthermore, parental knowledge was not found to predict educational supports; however, more research may be needed in this area. Overall, these results argue that improvements in communication and intervention for parents following pediatric TBI are warranted