Does Stake Size matter for Cooperation and Punishment?

The effects of stake size on cooperation and punishment are investigated using a public goods experiment. We find that an increase in stake size does neither significantly affect cooperation nor, interestingly, the level of punishment

Differential survival between visual environments supports a role of divergent sensory drive in cichlid fish speciation

Identifying the selective forces that initiate ecological speciation is a major challenge in evolutionary biology. Sensory drive has been implicated in speciation in various taxa, largely based on phenotype-environment correlations and signatures of selection in sensory genes. Here, we present a reciprocal transplant experiment revealing species differences in performance in alternative visual environments, consistent with speciation by divergent sensory drive. The closely related cichlids Pundamilia pundamilia and Pundamilia nyererei inhabit different visual environments in Lake Victoria and show associated differences in visual system properties. Mimicking the two light environments in the laboratory, we find a substantial reduction in survival of both species when reared in the other species’ visual environment. This implies that the observed differences in Pundamilia color vision are indeed adaptive and substantiates the implicit assumption in sensory drive speciation models that divergent environmental selection is strong enough to drive divergence in sensory properties

Associations between maternal characteristics and pharmaceutical treatment of gestational diabetes: an analysis of the UK Born in Bradford (BiB) cohort study

Objectives: To identify the maternal characteristics associated with pharmaceutical treatment of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Design: Prospective birth cohort study. Setting: Bradford, UK. Participants: 762 women from the Born in Bradford (BiB) cohort who were treated for GDM in a singleton pregnancy. BiB cohort participants were recruited from 2007 to 2010. All women booked for delivery were screened for GDM between 26 and 28 weeks of gestation using a 75 g 2-hour oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Outcome measure: GDM treatment type: lifestyle changes advice (lifestyle changes), lifestyle changes advice with supplementary insulin (insulin) and lifestyle changes advice with supplementary metformin (metformin). Results: 244 (32%) women were prescribed lifestyle changes advice alone while 518 (68%) were offered supplemental pharmaceutical treatment. The odds of receiving pharmaceutical treatment relative to lifestyle changes advice alone were increased for mothers who were obese (OR 4.6, 95% CI 2.8 to 7.5), those who smoked (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.2 to 5.5) and had higher fasting glucose levels at OGTT (OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.6 to 2.7). The odds of being prescribed pharmaceutical treatment rather than lifestyle changes advice were lower for Pakistani women (OR 0.7, 95% CI 0.4 to 1.0)) than White British women. Relative to insulin treatment, metformin was more likely to be offered to obese women than normal weight women (relative risk ratio, RRR 3.2, 95% CI 1.3 to 7.8) and less likely to be prescribed to women with higher fasting glucose concentrations at OGTT (RRR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2 to 0.6). Conclusions: In the BiB cohort, GDM pharmaceutical treatment tended to be prescribed to women who were obese, White British, who smoked and had more severe hyperglycaemia. The characteristics of metformin-treated mothers differed from those of insulin-treated mothers as they were more likely to be obese but had lower glucose concentrations at diagnosis

Evaluation de la pollution de l'eau par les Ethers de glycol (Eg)

Les Eg sont des substances largement utilisées dans les produits domestiques et industriels. Certains sont des toxiques, principalement de la reproduction et du sang. Leur présence dans les milieux aqueux a été peu recherchée, car leur polarité fait que les méthodes classiques sont inadéquates pour les détecter. Une méthode d'extraction de type SPME (Solid Phase Micro Extraction), couplée avec une analyse CG/FID ou CG/SM a été mise au point et utilisée pour évaluer la pollution dans un certain nombre de milieux aquatiques. Le traitement dans les stations diminue fortement la pollution de l'eau, mais certains pics de pollution subsistent. Les indications relatives à la pollution des nappes montrent qu'une étude plus systématique est nécessaire, notamment autour de décharges ayant reçu des déchets contenant des Eg

Інвестиційне кредитування переробних підприємств АПК банківськими установами

Метою статті є аналіз динаміки інвестиційного кредитування банківськими установами переробних підприємств агропромислового комплексу. Під час проведення дослідження були використані аналітичний, статистико – економічний, графічний, порівняльний методи та метод системного аналізу

Occurrence of subdural hematomas in Dutch glutaric aciduria type 1 patients

Patients with glutaric aciduria type 1 (GA1), a rare inherited metabolic disorder, have an increased risk for subdural hematomas (SDHs). GA1 is therefore generally included in the differential diagnosis of children presenting with SDHs. This retrospective cohort study reviews all 25 registered, in the Dutch Diagnosis Registration for Metabolic Disorders, GA1 patients in the Netherlands. This was done between May 2014 and November 2014 to determine the lifetime incidence of SDHs in this population. Seventeen patients were diagnosed either due to clinical symptoms or because of family members with GA1. One out of these 17 had a SDH. This patient showed widened Sylvian fissures on MRI, characteristic for GA1. Eight patients were diagnosed by newborn screening. Three of them had neuroimaging results, and none of them had SDHs. This study shows an overall lower incidence (4.0 %) of SDHs in patients with GA1 than reported in the literature (20–30 %). Conclusion: This finding, in combination with the fact that SDHs in GA1 appear to occur only in the presence of characteristic brain abnormalities on imaging, we recommend that GA1 should not routinely be a part of the differential diagnosis of children with unexplained SDHs in the absence of imaging characteristics suggestive of GA1. What is known:• Glutaric aciduria type 1 is a rare metabolic disorder predisposing children to subdural hematoma development due to brain abnormalities.• Because of these subdural hematomas, glutaric aciduria type 1 testing is part of abusive head trauma work-up.What is new:• The overall subdural hematoma incidence in glutaric aciduria type 1 patients is much lower than previously reported and only occurs in case of predisposing brain abnormalities

The association of glucagon with disease severity and progression in patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease:an observational cohort study

BACKGROUND: Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitors and ketogenesis have been shown to ameliorate disease progression in experimental autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). Glucagon is known to lower mTOR activity and stimulate ketogenesis. We hypothesized that in ADPKD patients, higher endogenous glucagon is associated with less disease severity and progression. METHODS: Data were analysed from 664 Dutch ADPKD patients participating in the Developing Intervention Strategies to Halt Progression of ADPKD observational cohort, including patients >18 years of age with an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥15 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and excluding patients with concomitant diseases or medication use that may impact the natural course of ADPKD. The association between glucagon and disease severity and progression was tested using multivariate linear regression and mixed modelling, respectively. RESULTS: The median glucagon concentration was 5.0 pmol/L [interquartile range (IQR) 3.4–7.2) and differed significantly between females and males [4.3 pmol/L (IQR 2.9–6.0) and 6.6 (4.5–9.5), P < 0.001, respectively]. Intrasubject stability of glucagon in 30 patients showed a strong correlation (Pearson’s correlation coefficient 0.893; P < 0.001). Moreover, glucagon showed significant associations with known determinants (sex, body mass index and copeptin; all P < 0.01) and known downstream effects (glucose, haemoglobin A1c and cholesterol; all P < 0.05), suggesting that glucagon was measured reliably. Cross-sectionally, glucagon was associated with eGFR and height-adjusted total kidney volume, but in the opposite direction of our hypothesis, and these lost significance after adjustment for confounders. Glucagon was not associated with an annual decline in kidney function or growth in kidney volume. CONCLUSIONS: These data do not provide evidence for a role of endogenous glucagon as a protective hormone in ADPKD. Intervention studies are needed to determine the relation between glucagon and ADPKD

The geochemistry of gem opals as evidence of their origin

International audienceSeventy-seven gem opals from ten countries were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) through a dilution process, in order to establish the nature of the impurities. The results are correlated to the mode of formation and physical properties and are instrumental in establishing the geographical origin of a gem opal. The geochemistry of an opal is shown to be dependant mostly on the host rock, at least for examples from Mexico and Brazil, even if modified by weathering processes. In order of decreasing concentration, the main impurities present are Al, Ca, Fe, K, Na, and Mg (more than 500 ppm). Other noticeable elements in lesser amounts are Ba, followed by Zr, Sr, Rb, U, and Pb. For the first time, geochemistry helps to discriminate some varieties of opals. The Ba content, as well as the chondritenormalized REE pattern, are the keys to separating sedimentary opals (BaN110 ppm, Eu and Ce anomalies) from volcanic opals (Bab110 ppm, no Eu or Ce anomaly). The Ca content, and to a lesser extent that of Mg, Al, K and Nb, helps to distinguish gem opals from different volcanic environments. The limited range of concentrations for all elements in precious (play-of-color) compared to common opals, indicates that this variety must have very specific, or more restricted, conditions of formation. We tentatively interpreted the presence of impurities in terms of crystallochemistry, even if opal is a poorly crystallized or amorphous material. The main replacement is the substitution of Si4+ by Al3+ and Fe3+. The induced charge imbalance is compensated chiefly by Ca2+, Mg2+, Mn2+, Ba2+, K+, and Na+. In terms of origin of color, greater concentrations of iron induce darker colors (from yellow to "chocolate brown"). This element inhibits luminescence for concentrations above 1000 ppm, whereas already a low content in U (=1 ppm) induces a green luminescence