The structure of dyadic support among couples with and without a long-term disability

Abstract This study examines support relationships among 65 couples in which the husband had a long-term spinal cord injury, and a comparison group of 65 couples without disability. Based on facet theory, we constructed a mapping sentence that forms a definitional framework for couple support, and developed a detailed inventory to assess attitudes regarding mutual support in couple relations, the sense of support availability, support behaviors of giving and receiving, the degree to which the support meets one's needs, response to received support, and preference for support from within the couple and from external sources. These are all measured with respect to instrumental, emotional and informational support. Smallest space analysis showed various structures of the relations between elements of support among men and women living with and without disability, as well as a core element of reciprocal support common to both men and women in couples with and without disability

Effects of habitat and livestock on nest productivity of the Asian houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii in Bukhara Province, Uzbekistan

To inform population support measures for the unsustainably hunted Asian houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii (IUCN Vulnerable) we examined potential habitat and land-use effects on nest productivity in the Kyzylkum Desert, Uzbekistan. We monitored 177 nests across different semi-arid shrub assemblages (clay-sand and salinity gradients) and a range of livestock densities (0–80 km-2). Nest success (mean 51.4%, 95% CI 42.4–60.4%) was similar across four years; predation caused 85% of those failures for which the cause was known, and only three nests were trampled by livestock. Nesting begins within a few weeks of arrival when food appears scarce, but later nests were more likely to fail owing to the emergence of a key predator, suggesting foraging conditions on wintering and passage sites may be important for nest productivity. Nest success was similar across three shrub assemblages and was unrelated to landscape rugosity, shrub frequency or livestock density, but was greater with taller mean shrub height (range 13–67 cm) within 50 m. Clutch size (mean = 3.2 eggs) and per-egg hatchability in successful nests (87.5%) did not differ with laying date, shrub assemblage or livestock density. We therefore found no evidence that livestock density reduced nest productivity across the range examined, while differing shrub assemblages appeared to offer similar habitat quality. Asian houbara appear well-adapted to a range of semi-desert habitats and tolerate moderate disturbance by pastoralism. No obvious in situ mitigation measures arise from these findings, leaving regulation and control as the key requirement to render hunting sustainable

Effects of habitat and land use on breeding season density of male Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii

Landscape-scale habitat and land-use influences on Asian Houbara Chlamydotis macqueenii (IUCN Vulnerable) remain unstudied, while estimating numbers of this cryptic, low-density, over-hunted species is challenging. In spring 2013, male houbara were recorded at 231 point counts, conducted twice, across a gradient of sheep density and shrub assemblages within 14,300 km² of the Kyzylkum Desert, Uzbekistan. Four sets of models related male abundance to: (1) vegetation structure (shrub height and substrate); (2) shrub assemblage; (3) shrub species composition (multidimensional scaling); (4) remote-sensed derived land-cover (GLOBCOVER, 4 variables). Each set also incorporated measures of landscape rugosity and sheep density. For each set, multi-model inference was applied to generalised linear mixed models of visit-specific counts that included important detectability covariates and point ID as a random effect. Vegetation structure received strongest support, followed by shrub species composition and shrub assemblage, with weakest support for the GLOBCOVER model set. Male houbara numbers were greater with lower mean shrub height, more gravel and flatter surfaces, but were unaffected by sheep density. Male density (mean 0.14 km-2, 95% CI, 0.12‒0.15) estimated by distance analysis differed substantially among shrub assemblages, being highest in vegetation dominated by Salsola rigida (0.22 [CI, 0.20‒0.25]), high in areas of S. arbuscula and Astragalus (0.14 [CI, 0.13‒0.16] and 0.15 [CI, 0.14‒0.17] respectively), lower (0.09 [CI, 0.08‒0.10]) in Artemisia and lowest (0.04 [CI, 0.04‒0.05]) in Calligonum. The study area was estimated to hold 1,824 males (CI: 1,645‒2,030). The spatial distribution of relative male houbara abundance, predicted from vegetation structure models, had the strongest correspondence with observed numbers in both model-calibration and the subsequent year’s data. We found no effect of pastoralism on male distribution but potential effects on nesting females are unknown. Density differences among shrub communities suggest extrapolation to estimate country- or range-wide population size must take account of vegetation composition

Non Thermal Irreversible Electroporation: Novel Technology for Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells Ablation

Non thermal Irreversible electroporation (NTIRE) is a new tissue ablation method that induces selective damage only to the cell membrane while sparing all other tissue components. Our group has recently showed that NTIRE attenuated neointimal formation in rodent model. The goal of this study was to determine optimal values of NTIRE for vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) ablation.33 Sprague-Dawley rats were used to compare NTIRE protocols. Each animal had NTIRE applied to its left common carotid artery using a custom-made electrodes. The right carotid artery was used as control. Electric pulses of 100 microseconds were used. Eight IRE protocols were compared: 1-4) 10 pulses at a frequency of 10 Hz with electric fields of 3500, 1750, 875 and 437.5 V/cm and 5-8) 45 and 90 pulses at a frequency of 1 Hz with electric fields of 1750 and 875 V/cm. Animals were euthanized after one week. Histological analysis included VSMC counting and morphometry of 152 sections. Selective slides were stained with elastic Van Gieson and Masson trichrome to evaluate extra-cellular structures. The most efficient protocols were 10 pulses of 3500 V/cm at a frequency of 10 Hz and 90 pulses of 1750 V/cm at a frequency of 1 Hz, with ablation efficiency of 89+/-16% and 94+/-9% respectively. Extra-cellular structures were not damaged and the endothelial layer recovered completely.NTIRE is a promising, efficient and simple novel technology for VMSC ablation. It enables ablation within seconds without causing damage to extra-cellular structures, thus preserving the arterial scaffold and enabling endothelial regeneration. This study provides scientific information for future anti-restenosis experiments utilizing NTIRE

A regulated deficit irrigation strategy for hedgerow olive orchards with high plant density

Background & Aims There is not a consensus on the best irrigation approach for super-high density (SHD) olive orchards. Our aim was to design and test a regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) strategy for a sustainable balance between water saving, tree vigour and oil production. Methods We tested our RDI strategy for 3 years in an ‘Arbequina’ orchard with 1,667 trees ha−1. Two levels of irrigation reduction were applied, 60RDI and 30RDI, scaled to replacing 60 % and 30 %, respectively, of the of irrigation needs (IN). We also had a full irrigation (FI) treatment as control, with IN totalling 4,701 m3 ha−1 Results The 30RDI treatment showed the best balance between water saving, tree vigour and oil production. With a yearly irrigation amount (IA) of 1,366 m3 ha−1, which meant 72 % water saving as compared to FI, the reduction in oil yield was 26 % only. Conclusions Our results, together with recent knowledge on the effect of water stress on fruit development, allowed us to suggest a potentially improved RDI strategy for which a total IA of ca. 2,100 m3 ha−1 was calculated. Both some management details and the benefits of this suggested RDI strategy are still to be tested

The effects of applied water at various fractions of measured evapotranspiration on reproductive growth and water productivity of Thompson Seedless grapevines

The reproductive growth and water productivity (WPb) of Thompson Seedless grapevines were measured as a function of applied water amounts at various fractions of measured grapevine ETc for a total of eight irrigation treatments. Shoots were harvested numerous times during the growing season to calculate water productivity. Berry weight was maximized at the 0.6–0.8 applied water treatments across years. As applied water amounts increased soluble solids decreased. Berry weight measured at veraison and harvest was a linear function of the mean midday leaf water potential measured between anthesis and veraison and anthesis and harvest, respectively. As applied water amounts increased up to the 0.6–0.8 irrigation treatments there was a significant linear increase in yield. Yields at greater applied water amounts either leveled off or decreased. The reduction in yield on either side of the yearly maximum was due to fewer numbers of clusters per vine. Maximum yield occurred at an ETc ranging from 550 to 700 mm. Yield per unit applied water and WPb increased as applied water decreased. The results from this study demonstrated that Thompson Seedless grapevines can be deficit irrigated, increasing water use efficiency while maximizing yields

Chilling requirements and dormancy evolution in grapevine buds.

Fluctuations in winter chilling availability impact bud dormancy and budburst. The objective of this work was to determine chilling requirements to induce and overcome endodormancy (dormancy controlled by chilling) of buds in different grape cultivars. "Chardonnay", "Merlot" and "Cabernet Sauvignon" shoots were collected in Veranópolis-RS vineyards in 2010, and submitted to a constant 3 °C temperature or daily cycles of 3/15 °C for 12/12h or 18/6h, until reaching 1120 chilling hours (CH, sum of hours with temperature ≤ 7.2 °C). Periodically, part of the samples in each treatment was transferred to 25 °C for budburst evaluation (green tip). Chilling requirements to induce and overcome endodormancy vary among cultivars, reaching a total of 136 CH for "Chardonnay", 298 CH for "Merlot" and 392 CH for "Cabernet Sauvignon". Of these, approximately 39, 53 and 91 CH are required for induction of endodormancy in the three cultivars, respectively. The thermal regimes tested (constant or alternating) do not influence the response pattern of each cultivar to cold, with 15 °C being inert in the CH accumulation process. In addition, time required to start budburst reduces with the increase in CH, at a rate of one day per 62 CH, without significant impacts on budburst uniformity. Index terms: Chilling hours; endodormancy; budburst; Vitis vinifera

Just married: the synergy between feminist criminology and the Tripartite Cybercrime Framework

This article is a theoretical treatment of feminist epistemology of crime, which advocates the centrality of gender as a theoretical starting point for the investigating of digital crimes. It does so by exploring the synergy between the feminist perspectives and the Tripartite Cybercrime Framework (TCF) (which argues that three possible factors motivate cybercrimes – socioeconomic, psychosocial, and geopolitical) to critique mainstream criminology and the meaning of the term “cybercrime”. Additionally, the article examines gender gaps in online harassment, cyber‐bullying, cyber‐fraud, revenge porn, and cyber‐stalking to demonstrate that who is victimised, why, and to what effect are the critical starting points for the analysis of the connections between gender and crimes. In turn, it uses the lens of intersectionality to acknowledge that, while conceptions of gender and crime interact, they intersect with other categories (e.g., sexuality) to provide additional layers of explanation. To nuance the utilitarian value of the synergy between the TCF and the feminist perspectives, the focus shifts to a recent case study (which compared socioeconomic and psychosocial cybercrimes). The article concludes that, while online and offline lives are inextricably intertwined, the victimisations in psychosocial cybercrimes may be more gendered than in socioeconomic cybercrimes. These contributions align the TCF to the feminist epistemology of crime in their attempt to move gender analysis of digital crimes “from margin to centre”

The effect of electroporation pulses on functioning of the heart

Electrochemotherapy is an effective antitumor treatment currently applied to cutaneous and subcutaneous tumors. Electrochemotherapy of tumors located close to the heart could lead to adverse effects, especially if electroporation pulses were delivered within the vulnerable period of the heart or if they coincided with arrhythmias of some types. We examined the influence of electroporation pulses on functioning of the heart of human patients by analyzing the electrocardiogram. We found no pathological morphological changes in the electrocardiogram; however, we demonstrated a transient RR interval decrease after application of electroporation pulses. Although no adverse effects due to electroporation have been reported so far, the probability for complications could increase in treatment of internal tumors, in tumor ablation by irreversible electroporation, and when using pulses of longer durations. We evaluated the performance of our algorithm for synchronization of electroporation pulse delivery with electrocardiogram. The application of this algorithm in clinical electroporation would increase the level of safety for the patient and suitability of electroporation for use in anatomical locations presently not accessible to existing electroporation devices and electrodes