Atlas of the forest sector in Ukraine with the focus on wood fuels

Layout: Anne Siika, MetlaThis is a review of the current situation of the forest sector in Ukraine by considering a collection of maps. The cartographic information is grouped in the following way: forest resources, silviculture, wood harvesting, production and the most important producers of wood-based products, forest education and research and the potential of wood energy. This review serves the information needs ofdifferent stakeholders and of those interested in the forest sector in Ukraine

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T Cell Epitopes in Coxsackievirus B4 Structural Proteins Concentrate in Regions Conserved between Enteroviruses

AbstractThe present study aimed to characterize systematically the target epitopes of T cell responses in CBV4 structural proteins. These were studied by synthesizing 86 overlapping 20-aa-long peptides covering the known sequence of CBV4 structural proteins and analyzing the proliferation responses of 18 CBV4-specific T cell lines against these peptides. Recognized peptides differed depending on the HLA-DR genotype of the T cell donor. They were concentrated to the VP4 and VP2 regions as six of seven common peptide epitopes located in this region, whereas there was only one in the VP3 region and none in the VP1 region. Peptides from conserved areas were recognized more often (on average, 15% of them stimulated each T cell line) than those derived from variable areas (3%) (P < 0.0001, Fisher's exact test). Some conserved peptides inducing T cell responsiveness in most subjects were identified, a knowledge which can be useful in the development of new synthetic vaccines

Intracellular localization of Treponema denticola chymotrypsin-like proteinase in chronic periodontitis

Treponema denticola is an important periodontal pathogen capable of tissue invasion. Its chymotrypsin-like proteinase (CTLP) can degrade a number of basement membrane components in vitro, thus suggesting a contribution to tissue invasion by the spirochete. The aim of this study was to analyze the localization of CTLP in chronic periodontitis tissues ex vivo. A polyclonal antibody specific to T. denticola cell-bound CTLP was used to detect the spirochetes in the gingival tissues of patients with moderate to severe chronic periodontitis (n=25) by immunohistochemistry and periodic acid-Schiff staining (PAS). The presence of T. denticola in the periodontal tissue samples was analyzed by PCR. Periodontal tissue samples of 12 of the 25 patients were found to be positive for T. denticola by PCR. Moreover, CTLP could be detected in the periodontal tissues of all these patients by immunohistochemistry. In the epithelium, the CTLP was mostly intracellular. Typically, the positive staining could be seen throughout the whole depth of the epithelium. When detected extracellularly, CTLP was localized mainly as granular deposits. The connective tissue stained diffusely positive in four cases. The positive staining co-localized with the PAS stain in nine cases. T. denticola and its CTLP could be detected in diseased human periodontium both intra- and extracellularly. The granular staining pattern was suggestive of the presence of T. denticola bacteria, whereas the more diffused staining pattern was indicative of the recent presence of the bacterium and shedding of the cell-bound proteinase

Happamuuden aiheuttamat vesistöhaitat ja niiden torjuntakeinot Sanginjoella

Sanginjoki, Oulujoen alin sivujoki, on Oulun seudun tärkeimpiä virkistysalueita ja Merikosken kalatietä lähin potentiaalinen vaelluskalojen nousualue. Joen ajoittainen happamuus kuitenkin heikentää Sanginjoen virkistyskäytöllistä ja ekologista arvoa. Kaupunki ja vesi – Sanginjoen virkistyskäyttöarvon parantaminen ja ekologinen kunnostus (2008-2011) -hankkeessa selvitettiin Sanginjoen happamuuden alkuperää, seurattiin laajasti eri alueilta jokeen laskevien valumavesien pH:n muutoksia sekä testattiin menetelmiä happamien huuhtoumien ennaltaehkäisyyn ja neutralointiin. Tulosten perusteella laadittiin toimenpidesuunnitelma happamuuden ehkäisemiseksi sekä happamuuden aiheuttamien haittojen lieventämiseksi. Julkaisussa on myös esitetty tietoa Sanginjoen ja sen valuma-alueen ominaisuuksista, joen ekologisesta tilasta, vedenlaadun kehityksestä sekä happamuuden ehkäisemiseen soveltuvista menetelmistä. Tulosten perusteella Sanginjoen veden happamuus usein voimistuu virtaamien kasvaessa. Etenkin kesä- ja syyssateiden yhteydessä havaittiin alhaisia pH-lukemia, joihin vaikuttivat maaperä, kasvillisuus ja maankäyttö. Hapan huuhtouma on pääosin peräisin turvepitoisten maiden orgaanisesta huuhtoumasta, mutta paikallisesti vedenlaatuun voivat vaikuttaa alueella esiintyvät happamat sulfaattimaat ja mustaliuskealueet. Sanginjoen vesi on ollut myös luontaisesti hapanta lähinnä suo- ja turvemaiden happamien valumavesien johdosta, mutta happamuus on todennäköisesti lisääntynyt ihmistoiminnan vaikutuksesta. Sanginjoen valuma-alueella testattujen vesiensuojelu- ja kunnostusmenetelmien vaikutukset happamien valumavesien neutraloinnissa vaihtelivat, mutta osa menetelmistä osoittautui käyttökelpoiseksi ja niitä voidaan suositella käytettävän jatkossa niin Sanginjoella kuin vastaavilla happamuudesta kärsivillä kohteilla. Menetelmien kehittämistä ja erityisesti vaikutusten seurantaa tulee kuitenkin edelleen jatkaa. Hankkeessa testatut menetelmät ovat keinoja ihmistoiminnasta aiheutuvan happamuuden lisääntymisen torjunnassa. Parhaiten Sanginjoen ja muiden happamuudesta kärsivien vesistöjen hapanta kuormitusta ehkäistään huomioimalla maankäytössä happamuuden kannalta kriittisten turve- ja sulfidipitoisten alueiden ominaisuudet ja sijoittuminen jo ennen maankäytön toimenpiteitä ja kuormituksen syntymistä

Spatial water table level modelling with multi-sensor unmanned aerial vehicle data in boreal aapa mires

Peatlands have been degrading globally, which is increasing pressure on restoration measures and monitoring. New monitoring methods are needed because traditional methods are time-consuming, typically lack a spatial aspect, and are sometimes even impossible to execute in practice. Remote sensing has been implemented to monitor hydrological patterns and restoration impacts, but there is a lack of studies that combine multi-sensor ultra-high-resolution data to assess the spatial patterns of hydrology in peatlands. We combine optical, thermal, and topographic unmanned aerial vehicle data to spatially model the water table level (WTL) in unditched open peatlands in northern Finland suffering from adjacent drainage. We predict the WTL with a linear regression model with a moderate fit and accuracy (R2 = 0.69, RMSE = 3.85 cm) and construct maps to assess the spatial success of restoration. We demonstrate that thermal-optical trapezoid-based wetness models and optical bands are strongly correlated with the WTL, but topography-based wetness indices do not. We suggest that the developed method could be used for quantitative restoration assessment, but before-after restoration imagery is required to verify our findings

Contribution of flow conditions and sand addition on hyporheic zone exchange in gravel beds

We conducted a series of tracer test experiments in 12 outdoor semi-natural flumes to assess the effects of variable flow conditions and sand addition on hyporheic zone conditions in gravel beds, mimicking conditions in headwater streams under sediment pressure. Two tracer methods were applied in each experiment: 2–5 tracer-pulse tests were conducted in all flumes and pulses were monitored at three distances downstream of the flume inlet (0 m, 5 m and 10 m, at bed surface), and in pipes installed into the gravel bed at 5 m and 10 m distances. The tracer breakthrough curves (total of 120 tracer injections) were then analysed with a one-dimensional solute transport model (OTIS) and compared with data from the gravel pipes in point-dilution pulse tests. Sand addition had a strong negative effect on horizontal fluxes (qh), whereas the fraction of the median travel time due to transient storage (F200) was determined more by flow conditions. These results suggest that even small additions of sand can modify the hyporheic zone exchange in gravel beds, thus making headwater streams with low sediment transport capacity particularly vulnerable to sediments transported into the stream from catchment land use activities

Symptoms and diagnostic delays in bladder cancer with high risk of recurrence : results from a prospective FinnBladder 9 trial

Purpose To investigate the symptoms and delays in the clinical pathway of bladder cancer (BC). Methods This is a substudy of a prospective, randomized, multicenter phase III study (FinnBladder 9, NCT01675219) where the efficacy of photodynamic diagnosis and 6 weekly optimized mitomycin C instillations are studied in pTa bladder cancer with high risk for recurrence. The data of presenting symptoms and critical time points were prospectively collected, and the effect of factors on delays was analyzed. Results At the time of analysis, 245 patients were randomized. Analysis included 131 patients with primary bladder cancer and their complete data. Sixty-nine percent had smoking history and 67% presented with macroscopic hematuria. Median patient delay (from symptoms to health-care contact) was 7 days. The median general practice delay (from health-care contact to urology referral) was 8 days. Median time from urology referral to cystoscopy was 23 days and from cystoscopy to TUR-BT 21 days. Total time used in the clinical pathway (from symptom to TUR-BT) was 78 days. Current and former smokers had non-significantly shorter patient-related and general practice delays compared to never smokers. TUR-BT delay was significantly shorter in patients with malignant cytology (16 days) compared to patients with benign cytology (21 days, p = 0.03). Conclusions Patient-derived delay was short and most of the delay occurred in the referral centers. The majority had macroscopic hematuria as the initial symptom. Surprisingly, current and past smokers were more prone to contact the health-care system compared to never smokers.Peer reviewe

Fungal assemblages in predictive stream bioassessment : A cross-taxon comparison along multiple stressor gradients

Highlights • We compared fungi, invertebrates and diatoms in model-based stream bioassessment. • Fungal models virtually equaled the overall best model in precision and accuracy. • Fungi were superior in identifying streams degraded by multiple stressors. • Results strongly support the use of microbial communities in stream bioassessment.Degradation of freshwater ecosystems requires efficient tools for assessing the ecological status of freshwater biota and identifying potential cause(s) for their biological degradation. While diatoms and macroinvertebrates are widely used in stream bioassessment, the potential utility of microbial communities has not been fully harnessed. Using data from 113 Finnish streams, we assessed the performance of aquatic leaf-associated fungal decomposers, relative to benthic macroinvertebrates and diatoms, in modelling-based bioassessment. We built multi-taxon niche -type predictive models for fungal assemblages by using genus-based and sequence-based identification levels. We then compared the models’ precision and accuracy in the prediction of reference conditions (number of native taxa) to corresponding models for macroinvertebrates and diatoms. Genus-based fungal model nearly equalled the accuracy and precision of our best model (macroinvertebrates), whereas the sequence-based model was less accurate and tended to overestimate the number of taxa. However, when the models were applied to streams disturbed by anthropogenic stressors (nutrient enrichment, sedimentation and acidification), alone or in combination, the sequence-based fungal assemblages were more sensitive than other taxonomic groups, especially when multiple stressors were present. Microbial leaf decomposition rates were elevated in sediment-stressed streams whereas decomposition attributable to leaf-shredding macroinvertebrates was accelerated by nutrients and decelerated by sedimentation. Comparison of leaf decomposition results to model output suggested that leaf decomposition rates do not detect effectively the presence of multiple simultaneous disturbances. The rapid development of global microbial database may soon enable species-level identification of leaf-associated fungi, facilitating a more precise and accurate modelling of reference conditions in streams using fungal communities. This development, combined with the sensitivity of aquatic fungi in detecting the presence of multiple human disturbances, makes leaf-associated fungal assemblages an indispensable addition in a stream ecologist’s toolbox