FOM: A Framework for Metaheuristic Optimization

Most metaheuristic approaches for discrete optimization are usually implemented from scratch. In this paper, we introduce and discuss FOM, an object-oriented framework for metaheuristic optimization to be used as a general tool for the development and the implementation of metaheuristic algorithms. The basic idea behind the framework is to separate the problem side from the metaheuristic algorithms, allowing this to reuse different metaheuristic components in different problems. In addition to describing the design and functionality of the framework, we apply it to illustrative examples. Finally, we present our conclusions and discuss futures development

Biocrusts Modulate Responses of Nitrous Oxide and Methane Soil Fluxes to Simulated Climate Change in a Mediterranean Dryland

Little is known about the role of biocrusts in regulating the responses of N2O and CH4 fluxes to climate change in drylands. Here, we aim to help filling this knowledge gap by using an 8-year field experiment in central Spain where temperature and rainfall are being manipulated (~ 1.9°C warming, 33% rainfall reduction and their combination) in areas with and without well-developed biocrust communities. Areas with initial high cover of well-developed biocrusts showed lower N2O emissions, enhanced CH4 uptake and higher abundances of functional genes linked to N2O and CH4 fluxes compared with areas with poorly developed biocrusts. Moreover, biocrusts modulated the responses of gases emissions and related functional genes to warming and rainfall reductions. Specifically, we found under rainfall exclusion and its combination with warming a sharp reduction in N2O fluxes (~ 96% and ~ 197%, respectively) only under well-developed biocrust cover. Warming and its combination with rainfall exclusion reduced CH4 consumption in areas with initial low cover of well-developed biocrust, whereas rainfall exclusion enhanced CH4 uptake only in areas with high initial cover of well-developed biocrusts. Similarly, the combination of warming and rainfall exclusion increased the abundance of the nosZ gene compared to the rainfall exclusion treatment and increased the abundance of the pmoA gene compared to the control, but only in areas with low biocrust cover. Taken together, our results indicate that well-developed biocrust communities could counteract the impact of warming and altered rainfall patterns on soil N2O and CH4 fluxes, highlighting their importance and the need to preserve them to minimize climate change impacts on drylands.A. L. is supported by a FPI fellowship from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BES-2014-067831). M.D-B. acknowledges support from the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions of the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme H2020-MSCA-IF-2016 under REA Grant Agreement No. 702057 (CLIMIFUN) and the BES Grant Agreement No. LRA17\1193 (MUSGONET). J.D acknowledges support from the Fundação para Ciência e Tecnologia (IF/00950/2014) and the FEDER, within the PT2020 Partnership Agreement and COMPETE 2020 (UID/BIA/04004/2013). This research was supported by the European Research Council (ERC Grant Agreements 242658 [BIOCOM] and 647038 [BIODESERT]), by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BIOMOD project, ref. CGL2013-44661-R and AGL2015-64582-C3-3-R project) and by the Comunidad de Madrid and European Structural and Investment Funds (AGRISOST-CM S2013/ABI-2717). F.T.M. acknowledges support from Generalitat Valenciana (BIOMORES project, ref. CIDEGENT/2018/041). B.K.S research on the topic of biodiversity and ecosystem functions is funded by Australian Research Council (DP170104634)

The apolipoprotein ϵ4 allele in Parkinson\u27s disease with and without dementia

The ϵ4 isoform of apolipoprotein E (Apo-E) may confer genetic susceptibility for familial and sporadic Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD). Because dementia in AD and Parkinson\u27s disease (PD) share many biologic and clinical features, we determined the Apo-E genotypes for 79 patients with PD, 22 of whom were demented, and for 44 age-matched healthy elderly controls from the same community. We hypothesized that if the dementia was similar to AD, there would be a higher allele frequency of apolipoprotein ϵ4 (Apoϵ4) in demented PD patients compared with nondemented PD patients and controls. The ϵ4 allele frequency for PD without dementia was 0.132, for PD with dementia, 0.068, and for controls, 0.102. There was no association between Apoϵ4 and dementia in the PD patients. We conclude that the biologic basis for dementia in PD may differ from that of AD

Contrasting environmental preferences of photosynthetic and non‐photosynthetic soil cyanobacteria across the globe

Aim: Cyanobacteria have shaped the history of life on Earth and continue to play important roles as carbon and nitrogen fixers in terrestrial ecosystems. However, their global distribution and ecological preferences remain poorly understood, particularly for two recently discovered non‐photosynthetic cyanobacterial classes (Sericytochromatia and Melainabacteria). Location: Two hundred and thirty‐seven locations across six continents encompassing multiple climates (arid, temperate, tropical, continental and polar) and vegetation types (forests, grasslands and shrublands). Time period: Sampling was carried out between 2003 and 2015. Major taxa studied: Photosynthetic and non‐photosynthetic cyanobacterial taxa. Methods: We conducted a field survey and used co‐occurrence network analysis and structural equation modelling to evaluate the distribution and environmental preferences of soil cyanobacteria across the globe. These ecological preferences were used to create a global atlas (predictive distribution maps) of soil cyanobacteria. Results: Network analyses identified three major groups of cyanobacterial taxa, which resembled the three main cyanobacterial classes: the photosynthetic Oxyphotobacteria‐dominated cluster, which were prevalent in arid and semi‐arid areas, and the non‐photosynthetic Sericytochromatia‐ and Melainabacteria‐dominated clusters, which preferred hyper‐arid oligotrophic and acidic/humid environments, respectively. Main conclusions: This study provides new insights into the environmental preferences of non‐photosynthetic cyanobacteria in soils globally. Our findings highlight the contrasting environmental preferences among the three clusters of cyanobacteria and suggest that alterations in environmental conditions linked to climate change might result in important changes in the ecology and biogeography of these functionally important microorganisms.M.D.-B. is supported by a Ramón y Cajal grant from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (RYC2018-025483-I), and by the BES grant agreement No LRB17\1019 (MUSGONET). The work of C.C.-D. and F.T.M. and the global drylands database were supported by the European Research Council [ERC Grant Agreements 242658 (BIOCOM) and 647038 (BIODESERT)] and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (BIOMOD project, ref. CGL2013-44661-R). F.T.M. acknowledges support from Generalitat Valenciana (BIOMORES project, ref. CIDEGENT/2018/041). Research on biodiversity by B.K.S. is supported by the Australian Research Council (DP170104634). R.D.B. was supported by the U.K. Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) project no. BD5003 and a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) International Exchange Grant (BB/L026406/1)

Seed production determines the entrance to dormancy of the inflorescence meristem of Pisum sativum and the end of the flowering period

[EN] Flowering plants adjust their reproductive period to maximize the success of the offspring. Monocarpic plants, those with a single reproductive cycle that precedes plant senescence and death, tightly regulate both flowering initiation and flowering cessation. The end of the flowering period involves the arrest of the inflorescence meristem activity, known as proliferative arrest, in what has been interpreted as an evolutionary adaptation to maximize the allocation of resources to seed production and the viability of the progeny. Factors influencing proliferative arrest were described for several monocarpic plant species many decades ago, but only in the last few years studies performed in Arabidopsis have allowed to approach proliferative arrest regulation in a comprehensive manner by studying the physiology, hormone dynamics, and genetic factors involved in its regulation. However, these studies remain restricted to Arabidopsis and there is a need to expand our knowledge to other monocarpic species to propose general mechanisms controlling the process. In this work, we have characterized proliferative arrest in Pisum sativum, trying to parallel available studies in Arabidopsis to maximize this comparative framework. We have assessed quantitatively the role of fruits/seeds in the process, the influence of the positional effect of these fruits/seeds in the behavior of the inflorescence meristem, and the transcriptomic changes in the inflorescence associated with the arrested state of the meristem. Our results support a high conservation of the factors triggering arrest in pea and Arabidopsis, but also reveal differences reinforcing the need to perform similar studies in other species.Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades, Grant/Award Number: FPU18/05599; Generalitat Valenciana, Grant/Award Number: CIPROM/2022/1 to C.F.; Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigacion, Grant/Award Numbers: RTI2018-099239-B-I00, TED2021-129963B-I00Burillo, E.; Ortega, R.; Vander Schoor, JK.; Martínez-Fernández, I.; Weller, JL.; Bombarely, A.; Balanzà, V.... (2024). Seed production determines the entrance to dormancy of the inflorescence meristem of Pisum sativum and the end of the flowering period. Physiologia Plantarum. 176(4). https://doi.org/10.1111/ppl.14425176

A global atlas of the dominant bacteria found in soil.

A global atlas of the dominant bacteria found in soil. Published in Science. http://science.sciencemag.org/content/359/6373/32

Alzheimer\u27s disease and vascular dementia in developing countries: prevalence, management, and risk factors

Despite mortality due to communicable diseases, poverty, and human conflicts, dementia incidence is destined to increase in the developing world in tandem with the ageing population. Current data from developing countries suggest that age-adjusted dementia prevalence estimates in 65 year olds are high (≥5%) in certain Asian and Latin American countries, but consistently low (1–3%) in India and sub-Saharan Africa; Alzheimer\u27s disease accounts for 60% whereas vascular dementia accounts for ∼30% of the prevalence. Early-onset familial forms of dementia with single-gene defects occur in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Illiteracy remains a risk factor for dementia. The APOE ε4 allele does not influence dementia progression in sub-Saharan Africans. Vascular factors, such as hypertension and type 2 diabetes, are likely to increase the burden of dementia. Use of traditional diets and medicinal plant extracts might aid prevention and treatment. Dementia costs in developing countries are estimated to be US$73 billion yearly, but care demands social protection, which seems scarce in these regions

Climate legacies drive global soil carbon stocks in terrestrial ecosystems

Climatic conditions shift gradually over millennia, altering the rates at which carbon (C) is fixed from the atmosphere and stored in the soil. However, legacy impacts of past climates on current soil C stocks are poorly understood. Weused data from more than 5000 terrestrial sites from three global and regional data sets to identify the relative importance of current and past (Last Glacial Maximum andmid-Holocene) climatic conditions in regulating soil C stocks in natural and agricultural areas. Paleoclimate always explained a greater amount of the variance in soil C stocks than current climate at regional and global scales. Our results indicate that climatic legacies help determine global soil C stocks in terrestrial ecosystems where agriculture is highly dependent on current climatic conditions. Our findings emphasize the importance of considering how climate legacies influence soil C content, allowing us to improve quantitative predictions of global C stocks under different climatic scenarios