Is conduct after capture training sufficiently stressful?

Conduct after capture (CAC) training is for personnel at risk of being captured. To be effective, it needs to be stressful. But how do we know if it is stressful enough? This study uses biomarkers and cognitive measures to evaluate CAC. Soldiers undergoing CAC were measured by the stress hormone cortisol from saliva samples at baseline and during training. The training consisted of being taken capture and put through a number of realistic and threatening scenarios, targeting survival strategies taught in the preceding week. Between scenarios, the trainees were held in a holding cell where they were monitored by a guard. The saliva samples were taken in conjunction with the scenarios. The whole training took place over a period of ~24 h. Cognitive performance was measured at baseline and after training. Three groups took part Group A (n = 20) was taken after 48 h of intense tasks leaving them in a poor resting state. Group B (n = 23) was well rested at CAC onset. Group C (n = 10) was part of a survival, evasion, resistance, and escape (SERE) instructor course. The CAC training was the same for all groups. Group A exhibited a high increase in cortisol during CAC, compared to baseline levels were multiple times as high as “expected” values. Group B exhibited elevated levels slightly lower than those of group A, they also “dropped” to “normal” levels during the latter part of the exercise. Group C displayed the least increase with only slightly elevated levels. CAC training is stressful and cortisol levels were elevated enough to satisfy the prerequisite for effective stress inoculation. No cognitive performance drop could be identified; however, several participants “froze” during the exercise due to intensive stress

Long-term decline in northern pike (Esox lucius L.) populations in the Baltic Sea revealed by recreational angling data

In the Baltic Sea, the large predatory fish northern pike (Esox lucius L.) is important for both recreational fisheries and ecosystem functioning. As existing fishery-independent surveys do not adequately monitor pike populations, a general lack of knowledge on population status and trends poses challenges for management. Here we use recreational angling data as an alternative method to describe pike population development along the Swedish Baltic Sea coast from 1938 onwards and assess the change over time in potential mortality factors by estimating harvest by fisheries and consumption by large predators. Data from a Swedish national register on trophy-sized pike (>12 kg) showed that numbers and maximum sizes peaked in 1990-1995, after which declines in both metrics are evident. In logbooks from a sport fishing club in the Stockholm archipelago, a simultaneous decrease in maximum sizes of pike was observed, together with a decrease in the total number of pike caught per fishing day. Jointly, these data indicate a decline in the abundance of large pike since around 1990. While commercial pike fisheries in the Baltic Sea have decreased continuously since the 1950s, recreational fishing increased after 1985, when Swedish coastal waters were made open access to anglers. The declines in large pike starting in the 1990s could, thus, have been driven by an increase in mortality from recreational fisheries, which at the time primarily practiced catch and kill. Since the 2000s, bag and slot length limits, spawning closures, and a general increase in catch-and-release fishing has reduced the landings of pike in recreational fisheries. Despite these fisheries regulations and higher release rates the decline in catches of large pike has continued, indicating an effect of other mortality factors. The strong growth of grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis) populations suggest that predation pressure on pike has increased over time. In the Stockholm archipelago these two predators were estimated to remove 5-18 times (range based on different diet composition estimates) more pike biomass than total fisheries landings in 2014-2017. To improve the situation for northern pike in the Baltic Sea managers need to consider both fisheries restrictions and measures to decrease predation pressure and increase recruitment. Catch data from recreational fisheries may be used to evaluate such management efforts by providing information on the population development of this keystone species

The Grazemore Decision Support System for Grazing Management of Dairy Cows

Low prices of concentrates and the high demands for good management of grass growth associated with grazing, have led to lower utilisation of grazed grass in Europe. The use of decision support systems (DSS) with valid predictions of herbage growth (HG) and milk yield (MY) may improve grazing management for dairy farmers. The aim of this study was to explore the possibilities to improve grazing management of dairy cows in Europe, by developing a DSS within the European Union project, Grazemore

Inhibition of proteasome deubiquitinating activity as a novel cancer therapy

Ubiquitin-tagged substrates are degraded by the 26S proteasome, which is a multisubunit complex comprising a proteolytic 20S core particle capped by 19S regulatory particles. The approval of bortezomib for the treatment of multiple myeloma validated the 20S core particle as an anticancer drug target. Here we describe the small molecule b-AP15 as a previously unidentified class of proteasome inhibitor that abrogates the deubiquitinating activity of the 19S regulatory particle. b-AP15 inhibited the activity of two 19S regulatory-particle-associated deubiquitinases, ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase 5 (UCHL5) and ubiquitin-specific peptidase 14 (USP14), resulting in accumulation of polyubiquitin. b-AP15 induced tumor cell apoptosis that was insensitive to TP53 status and overexpression of the apoptosis inhibitor BCL2. We show that treatment with b-AP15 inhibited tumor progression in four different in vivo solid tumor models and inhibited organ infiltration in an acute myeloid leukemia model. Our results show that the deubiquitinating activity of the 19S regulatory particle is a new anticancer drug target.CancerfondenRadiumhemmets forskningsfonderVetenskapsrådetStrategiska forskningsstiftelsenVinnovaEuropean Union CHEMORES, Frame program 6 (LSHC-CT-2007-037665)Swedish Children Cancer SocietyAccepte

Fast Multigrid Solution Method for Nested Edge-Based Finite Element Meshes

In this paper a fast multigrid solution method for edge-based finite element magnetostatic field computation with nested meshes in introduced and its efficiency is investigated. Special prolongation and restriction matrices were constructed according to the nature of the edge based field approximation