The role of citizen science in meeting SDG targets around soil health

Healthy soils are vital for sustainable development, yet consistent soil monitoring is scarce, and soils are poorly represented in United Nations Sustainable Development Goals targets and indicators. There is a clear need for specific ambitions on soil health, accompanying metrics, and cost-effective monitoring methodologies. In this paper, we review citizen science methods and platforms which could compliment structured soil monitoring programmes and contribute to filling this knowledge gap. We focussed on soil structure, organic carbon, biodiversity, nutrients, and vegetation cover. Each method was classified as red, amber, or green (RAG) in terms of time requirements, cost, and data reliability. Toolkits were assessed in terms of cost and requirement for specialist kit. We found 32 methods across the five indicators. Three soil monitoring methods scored green on all criteria, and 20 (63%) scored green on two criteria. We found 13 toolkits appropriate for citizen science monitoring of soil health. Three of them are free, easy to use, and do not require specialist equipment. Our review revealed multiple citizen science methods and toolkits for each of the five soil health indicators. This should pave the way towards a cost-effective, joined-up approach on soil health, informing national and international policy and supporting the move towards farmer-led, data-driven decision-making

Perspectives on ethnic and racial disparities in Alzheimer\u27s disease and related dementias: Update and areas of immediate need

Alzheimer\u27s disease and related dementias (ADRDs) are a global crisis facing the aging population and society as a whole. With the numbers of people with ADRDs predicted to rise dramatically across the world, the scientific community can no longer neglect the need for research focusing on ADRDs among underrepresented ethnoracial diverse groups. The Alzheimer\u27s Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer\u27s Research and Treatment (ISTAART; alz.org/ISTAART) comprises a number of professional interest areas (PIAs), each focusing on a major scientific area associated with ADRDs. We leverage the expertise of the existing international cadre of ISTAART scientists and experts to synthesize a cross-PIA white paper that provides both a concise “state-of-the-science” report of ethnoracial factors across PIA foci and updated recommendations to address immediate needs to advance ADRD science across ethnoracial populations. © 2018 The Author

Population dynamics and genetic connectivity in recent chimpanzee history

The European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement no. 864203) (to T.M.-B.). BFU2017-86471-P (MINECO/FEDER, UE) (to T.M.-B.). “Unidad de Excelencia María de Maeztu”, funded by the AEI (CEX2018-000792-M) (to T.M.-B.). Howard Hughes International Early Career (to T.M.-B.). NIH 1R01HG010898-01A1 (to T.M.-B.). Secretaria d’Universitats i Recerca and CERCA Program del Departament d’Economia i Coneixement de la Generalitat de Catalunya (GRC 2017 SGR 880) (to T.M.-B.). UCL’s Wellcome Trust ISSF3 award 204841/Z/16/Z (to A.M.A. and J.M.S.). Generalitat de Catalunya (2017 SGR-1040) (to M. Llorente). Wellcome Trust Investigator Award 202802/Z/16/Z (to D.A.H.). The Pan African Program: The Cultured Chimpanzee (PanAf) is generously funded by the Max Planck Society, the Max Planck Society Innovation Fund, and the Heinz L. Krekeler Foundation.Knowledge on the population history of endangered species is critical for conservation, but whole-genome data on chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) is geographically sparse. Here, we produced the first non-invasive geolocalized catalog of genomic diversity by capturing chromosome 21 from 828 non-invasive samples collected at 48 sampling sites across Africa. The four recognized subspecies show clear genetic differentiation correlating with known barriers, while previously undescribed genetic exchange suggests that these have been permeable on a local scale. We obtained a detailed reconstruction of population stratification and fine-scale patterns of isolation, migration, and connectivity, including a comprehensive picture of admixture with bonobos (Pan paniscus). Unlike humans, chimpanzees did not experience extended episodes of long-distance migrations, which might have limited cultural transmission. Finally, based on local rare variation, we implement a fine-grained geolocalization approach demonstrating improved precision in determining the origin of confiscated chimpanzees.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Comparative Isotope Ecology of African Great Apes

The isotope ecology of great apes is a useful reference for palaeodietary reconstructions in fossil hominins. As extant apes live in C3 dominated habitats, variation in isotope signatures is assumed to be low compared to hominoids also exploiting C4-plant resources. However, isotopic differences between sites and between and within individuals were poorly understood due to the lack of vegetation baseline data. In this comparative study we included all species of free-ranging African great apes (Pan troglodytes, Pan paniscus, Gorilla gorilla gorilla and Gorilla beringeri beringei). We explore differences in isotope baselines across different habitats and how isotopic signatures in apes can be related to feeding niches (faunivory and folivory). Secondly, we illustrate how stable isotopic variation within African ape populations compares to other primates, including hominins from the fossil record, and discuss possible implications for dietary flexibility. Using 815 carbon and nitrogen isotope data from 155 sectioned hair samples and an additional collection of 189 fruit samples we compare six different great ape sites. We investigate the relationship between vegetation baselines and climatic variables, and subsequently correct great ape isotope data to a standardized plant baseline from the respective sites. We gained temporal isotopic profiles of individual animals by sectioning hair along its growth trajectory. Isotopic signatures of great apes differed between sites, mainly as vegetation isotope baselines were correlated with site-specific climatic conditions. We show that controlling for plant isotopic characteristics at a given site is essential for data interpretation. When controlling for plant baseline effects, we found distinct isotopic profiles for each great ape population. Based on evidence from habituated groups and sympatric great ape species these differences could be related to faunivory and folivory. Dietary flexibility in extant apes varies between species and populations, but temporal isotopic variation was overall lower than in species shifting from C3 to C4-resources, including fossil hominins and extant primates

Recent genetic connectivity and clinal variation in chimpanzees.

Funder: Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Max Planck Society); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004189Funder: Max Planck Society Innovation Fund Heinz L. Krekeler FoundationMuch like humans, chimpanzees occupy diverse habitats and exhibit extensive behavioural variability. However, chimpanzees are recognized as a discontinuous species, with four subspecies separated by historical geographic barriers. Nevertheless, their range-wide degree of genetic connectivity remains poorly resolved, mainly due to sampling limitations. By analyzing a geographically comprehensive sample set amplified at microsatellite markers that inform recent population history, we found that isolation by distance explains most of the range-wide genetic structure of chimpanzees. Furthermore, we did not identify spatial discontinuities corresponding with the recognized subspecies, suggesting that some of the subspecies-delineating geographic barriers were recently permeable to gene flow. Substantial range-wide genetic connectivity is consistent with the hypothesis that behavioural flexibility is a salient driver of chimpanzee responses to changing environmental conditions. Finally, our observation of strong local differentiation associated with recent anthropogenic pressures portends future loss of critical genetic diversity if habitat fragmentation and population isolation continue unabated

Environmental variability supports chimpanzee behavioural diversity.

Funder: Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Max Planck Society); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100004189Funder: Heinz L. Krekeler FoundationLarge brains and behavioural innovation are positively correlated, species-specific traits, associated with the behavioural flexibility animals need for adapting to seasonal and unpredictable habitats. Similar ecological challenges would have been important drivers throughout human evolution. However, studies examining the influence of environmental variability on within-species behavioural diversity are lacking despite the critical assumption that population diversification precedes genetic divergence and speciation. Here, using a dataset of 144 wild chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) communities, we show that chimpanzees exhibit greater behavioural diversity in environments with more variability - in both recent and historical timescales. Notably, distance from Pleistocene forest refugia is associated with the presence of a larger number of behavioural traits, including both tool and non-tool use behaviours. Since more than half of the behaviours investigated are also likely to be cultural, we suggest that environmental variability was a critical evolutionary force promoting the behavioural, as well as cultural diversification of great apes

Author Correction: Environmental variability supports chimpanzee behavioural diversity

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-21010-z

A new class of models for computing receptor-ligand binding affinities

AbstractModels for predicting the binding affinities of molecules in solution are either very detailed, making them computationally intensive and hard to test, or very simple, and thus less informative than one might wish. A new class of models that focus on the predominant states of the binding molecules promise to capture the essential physics of binding at modest computational cost