Evaluation of climate change impacts on the hydrologic response of a sparsely-monitored basin in Sardinia, Italy, through distributed hydrologic simulations and hydrometeorological downscaling

The water resources and hydrologic extremes in Mediterranean basins are heavily influenced by climate variability. Modeling these watersheds is difficult due to the complex nature of the hydrologic response as well as the sparseness of hydrometeorological observations. In this work, we first present a strategy to calibrate a distributed hydrologic model, known as TIN-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator (tRIBS), in the Rio Mannu basin, a mediumsized watershed (472.5 km2) located in an agricultural area in Sardinia, Italy. In the basin, precipitation, streamflow and meteorological data were collected within different historical periods and at diverse temporal resolutions. We designed two statistical tools for downscaling precipitation and potential evapotranspiration data to create the hourly, high-resolution forcing for the hydrologic model from daily records. Despite the presence of several sources of uncertainty in the observations and model parameterization, the use of the disaggregated forcing led to good calibration and validation performances for the tRIBS model, when daily discharge observations were available. Future climate projections based on global and regional climate models (GCMs and RCMs) indicate that the Mediterranean basins will most likely suffer a decrease in water availability and an intensification of hydrologic extremes. Process-based distributed hydrologic models (DHMs), like tRIBS, have the potential to simulate the complex hydrologic response of Mediterranean watersheds. Thus, when used in combination with RCMs, DHMs can reduce the uncertainty in the quantification of the local impacts of climate change on water resources. In this study, we apply the calibrated tRIBS model in the Rio Mannu basin to evaluate the effects of climate changes reducing related uncertainties. The two downscaling algorithms and the DHM were used to simulate the watershed response to a set of bias-corrected outputs from four RCMs for two simulation extents: a reference (1971 to 2000) and a future (2041 to 2070) period. The time series and spatial maps simulated by the DHM were then post-processed by computing several metrics to quantify the changes on water resource availability and hydrologic extremes in the future climate scenarios as compared to historical conditions. The research was carried out within the CLIMB project, founded by the 7th Framework Programme of the European Commission

Binding of αvβ3 Integrin-Specific Radiotracers Is Modulated by Both Integrin Expression Level and Activation Status

Open Access via Springer Compact Agreement Acknowledgements We are very grateful to Prof. Calderwood (Yale University, USA) for providing the THD DNA construct, Dr. Massimiliano Baldassarre (University of Aberdeen) for useful discussions on integrin regulation and Charlie Taylor for helping to optimise the THD transfection experiments. We thank the NHS Grampian Endowment Fund for funding this research and CRANES and the Roland Sutton Academic Trust for financial support for AA.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Design and synthesis of an RGD peptidomimetic-paclitaxel conjugate targeting αvβ3 integrin for tumour-directed drug delivery

We thank the Development Trust, University of Aberdeen, for funding a fellowship to M.P. and a studentship to A.A. Supporting information for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0036-1590898.Peer reviewedPostprin

The effects of dehydration on metabolic and neuromuscular functionality during cycling

This study aimed to determine the effects of dehydration on metabolic and neuromuscular functionality performance during a cycling exercise. Ten male subjects (age 23.4 \ub1 2.7 years; body weight 74.6 \ub1 10.4 kg; height 177.3 \ub1 4.6 cm) cycled at 65% VO2max for 60 min followed by a time-to-trial (TT) at 95% VO2max, in two different conditions: dehydration (DEH) and hydration (HYD). The bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) and body weight measurements were performed to assess body fluid changes. Heart rate (HR), energy cost, minute ventilation, oxygen uptake, and metabolic power were evaluated during the experiments. In addition, neuromuscular activity of the vastus medialis and biceps femoris muscles were assessed by surface electromyography. After exercise induced dehydration, the bioimpedance vector significantly lengthens along the major axis of the BIVA graph, in conformity with the body weight change ( 122%), that indicates a fluid loss. Metabolic and neuromuscular parameters significantly increased during TT at 95% VO2max with respect to constant workload at 65% of VO2max. Dehydration during a one-hour cycling test and subsequent TT caused a significant increase in HR, while neuromuscular function showed a lower muscle activation in dehydration conditions on both constant workload and on TT. Furthermore, a significant difference between HYD and DEH for TT duration was found

Enzymatic radiosynthesis of a 18F-Glu-Ureido-Lys ligand for the prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)

We thank the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, UK, for a research grant (EP/M01262X/1).Peer reviewedPostprin

Synthesis of the fungal metabolite YWA1 and related constructs as tools to study MelLec-mediated immune response to Aspergillus infections

Funding Sources Funding was provided by the Wellcome Trust (102705, 097377), the Medical Research Council Centre for Medical Mycology and the University of Aberdeen (MR/N006364/1). ACKNOWLEDGMENT We thank Ian Fraser Flow Cytometry and Microscopy and Histology facilities, University of Aberdeen.Peer reviewedPostprin

Metabolomics and psychological features in fibromyalgia and electromagnetic sensitivity

Fibromyalgia (FM) as Fibromyalgia and Electromagnetic Sensitivity (IEI-EMF) are a chronic and systemic syndrome. The main symptom is represented by strong and widespread pain in the musculoskeletal system. The exact causes that lead to the development of FM and IEI-EMF are still unknown. Interestingly, the proximity to electrical and electromagnetic devices seems to trigger and/or amplify the symptoms. We investigated the blood plasma metabolome in IEI-EMF and healthy subjects using 1H NMR spectroscopy coupled with multivariate statistical analysis. All the individuals were subjected to tests for the evaluation of psychological and physical features. No significant differences between IEI-EMF and controls relative to personality aspects, Locus of Control, and anxiety were found. Multivariate statistical analysis on the metabolites identified by NMR analysis allowed the identification of a distinct metabolic profile between IEI-EMF and healthy subjects. IEI-EMF were characterized by higher levels of glycine and pyroglutamate, and lower levels of 2-hydroxyisocaproate, choline, glutamine, and isoleucine compared to healthy subjects. These metabolites are involved in several metabolic pathways mainly related to oxidative stress defense, pain mechanisms, and muscle metabolism. The results here obtained highlight possible physiopathological mechanisms in IEI-EMF patients to be better defined

Design, synthesis, conjugation and reactivity of novel trans,trans-1,5-cyclooctadiene-derived bioorthogonal linkers

Funding Information: The authors thank Irene Feiner, Marion van Leeuwen-Chomet, and Joey Muns for their helpful insight. We acknowledge financial support from the University of Aberdeen and European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement no. 675417.Peer reviewedPostprin

NGR Tumor-Homing Peptides : Structural Requirements for Effective APN (CD13) Targeting

Acknowledgements We thank The Development Trust, University of Aberdeen, for financial support and a fellowship to M.P.Peer reviewedPublisher PD