Predicting Runoff Risks By Digital Soil Mapping

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Digital soil mapping (DSM) permits continuous mapping soil types and properties through raster formats considering variation within soil class, in contrast to the traditional mapping that only considers spatial variation of soils at the boundaries of delineated polygons. The objective of this study was to compare the performance of SoLIM (Soil Land Inference Model) for two sets of environmental variables on digital mapping of saturated hydraulic conductivity and solum depth (A + B horizons) and to apply the best model on runoff risk evaluation. The study was done in the Posses watershed, MG, Brazil, and SoLIM was applied for the following sets of co-variables: 1) terrain attributes (AT): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index. 2) Geomorphons and terrain attributes (GEOM): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index combined with geomorphons. The most precise methodology was applied to predict runoff areas risk through the Wetness Index based on contribution area, solum depth, and saturated hydraulic conductivity. GEOM was the best set of co-variables for both properties, so this was the DSM model used to predict the runoff risk. The runoff risk showed that the critical months are from November to March. The new way to classify the landscape to use on DSM was demonstrated to be an efficient tool with which to model process that occurs on watersheds and can be used to forecast the runoff risk.40Brazilian Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel - CAPESBrazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development - CNPq [471522/2012-0, 201987/2012-0, 305010/2013-1]Minas Gerais State Research Foundation - FAPEMIG [CAG-APQ-01423-11, CAG-PPM-00422-13]Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Predicting runoff risks by digital soil mapping

Digital soil mapping (DSM) permits continuous mapping soil types and properties through raster formats considering variation within soil class, in contrast to the traditional mapping that only considers spatial variation of soils at the boundaries of delineated polygons. The objective of this study was to compare the performance of SoLIM (Soil Land Inference Model) for two sets of environmental variables on digital mapping of saturated hydraulic conductivity and solum depth (A + B horizons) and to apply the best model on runoff risk evaluation. The study was done in the Posses watershed, MG, Brazil, and SoLIM was applied for the following sets of co-variables: 1) terrain attributes (AT): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index. 2) Geomorphons and terrain attributes (GEOM): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index combined with geomorphons. The most precise methodology was applied to predict runoff areas risk through the Wetness Index based on contribution area, solum depth, and saturated hydraulic conductivity. GEOM was the best set of co-variables for both properties, so this was the DSM model used to predict the runoff risk. The runoff risk showed that the critical months are from November to March. The new way to classify the landscape to use on DSM was demonstrated to be an efficient tool with which to model process that occurs on watersheds and can be used to forecast the runoff risk40113CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQCOORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIOR - CAPESFUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE MINAS GERAIS - FAPEMIG471522/2012-0; 201987/2012-0; 305010/2013-1Sem informaçãoCAG-APQ-01423-11; CAG-PPM-00422-1

A Compensatory Mutation Provides Resistance to Disparate HIV Fusion Inhibitor Peptides and Enhances Membrane Fusion

Fusion inhibitors are a class of antiretroviral drugs used to prevent entry of HIV into host cells. Many of the fusion inhibitors being developed, including the drug enfuvirtide, are peptides designed to competitively inhibit the viral fusion protein gp41. With the emergence of drug resistance, there is an increased need for effective and unique alternatives within this class of antivirals. One such alternative is a class of cyclic, cationic, antimicrobial peptides known as θ-defensins, which are produced by many non-human primates and exhibit broad-spectrum antiviral and antibacterial activity. Currently, the θ-defensin analog RC-101 is being developed as a microbicide due to its specific antiviral activity, lack of toxicity to cells and tissues, and safety in animals. Understanding potential RC-101 resistance, and how resistance to other fusion inhibitors affects RC-101 susceptibility, is critical for future development. In previous studies, we identified a mutant, R5-tropic virus that had evolved partial resistance to RC-101 during in vitro selection. Here, we report that a secondary mutation in gp41 was found to restore replicative fitness, membrane fusion, and the rate of viral entry, which were compromised by an initial mutation providing partial RC-101 resistance. Interestingly, we show that RC-101 is effective against two enfuvirtide-resistant mutants, demonstrating the clinical importance of RC-101 as a unique fusion inhibitor. These findings both expand our understanding of HIV drug-resistance to diverse peptide fusion inhibitors and emphasize the significance of compensatory gp41 mutations. © 2013 Wood et al

‘Down with communism – Power to the people’: The legacies of 1989 and beyond

This special issue brings together reflections on the thirtieth anniversary of the revolutions of 1989 and considers their consequences for our understandings of European and global society. What seemed for some at least the surprising and rapid collapse of Eastern European state socialism prompted rethinking in social theory about the potential for emancipatory politics and new modes of social and political organization. At the same time, there was increased reflection on the nature of varieties of capitalism and the meaning of socialism beyond the failure of at least its etatist and autarkic mode. The five articles here and the editors’ introduction address themes such as utopian hopes, civil society, the transformation of Europe, the world beyond 1989, and new configurations of power and conflict

Predicting runoff risks by digital soil mapping

Digital soil mapping (DSM) permits continuous mapping soil types and properties through raster formats considering variation within soil class, in contrast to the traditional mapping that only considers spatial variation of soils at the boundaries of delineated polygons. The objective of this study was to compare the performance of SoLIM (Soil Land Inference Model) for two sets of environmental variables on digital mapping of saturated hydraulic conductivity and solum depth (A + B horizons) and to apply the best model on runoff risk evaluation. The study was done in the Posses watershed, MG, Brazil, and SoLIM was applied for the following sets of co-variables: 1) terrain attributes (AT): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index. 2) Geomorphons and terrain attributes (GEOM): slope, plan curvature, elevation and topographic wetness index combined with geomorphons. The most precise methodology was applied to predict runoff areas risk through the Wetness Index based on contribution area, solum depth, and saturated hydraulic conductivity. GEOM was the best set of co-variables for both properties, so this was the DSM model used to predict the runoff risk. The runoff risk showed that the critical months are from November to March. The new way to classify the landscape to use on DSM was demonstrated to be an efficient tool with which to model process that occurs on watersheds and can be used to forecast the runoff risk

Contamination of the Conchos River in Mexico: Does It Pose a Health Risk to Local Residents?

Presently, water contamination issues are of great concern worldwide. Mexico has not escaped this environmental problem, which negatively affects aquifers, water bodies and biodiversity; but most of all, public health. The objective was to determine the level of water contamination in six tributaries of the Conchos River and to relate their levels to human health risks. Bimonthly samples were obtained from each location during 2005 and 2006. Physical-chemical variables (temperature, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), Total solids and total nitrogen) as well as heavy metals (As, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, V, Zn, and Li) were determined. The statistical analysis considered yearly, monthly, and location effects, and their interactions. Temperatures differed only as a function of the sampling month (P < 0.001) and the pH was different for years (P = 0.006), months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P = 0.018). The EC was different for each location (P < 0.001), total solids did not change and total nitrogen was different for years (P < 0.001), months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P < 0.001). The As concentration was different for months (P = 0.008) and the highest concentration was detected in February samples with 0.11 mg L−1. The Cr was different for months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P < 0.001), noting the highest value of 0.25 mg L−1. The Cu, Fe, Mn, Va and Zn were different for years, months, and their interaction. The highest value of Cu was 2.50 mg L−1; for Fe, it was 16.36 mg L−1; for Mn it was 1.66 mg L−1; V was 0.55 mg L−1; and Zn was 0.53 mg L−1. For Ni, there were differences for years (P = 0.030), months (P < 0.001), and locations (P = 0.050), with the highest Ni value being 0.47 mg L−1. The Li level was the same for sampling month (P < 0.001). This information can help prevent potential health risks in the communities established along the river watershed who use this natural resource for swimming and fishing. Some of the contaminant concentrations found varied from year to year, from month to month and from location to location which necessitated a continued monitoring process to determine under which conditions the concentrations of toxic elements surpass existing norms for natural waters

Structure-activity relationship of the exopolysaccharide from a psychrophilic bacterium: A strategy for cryoprotection

Microrganisms from sea ice, glacial and subglacial environments are currently under investigation due to their relevant ecological functions in these habitats, and to their potential biotechnological applications. The cold-adapted Colwellia psychrerythraea 34H produces extracellular polysaccharides with cryoprotection activity. We here describe the purification and detailed molecular primary and secondary structure of the exopolysaccharide (EPS) secreted by C. psychrerythraea 34H cells grown at 4 °C. The structure was determined by chemical analysis and NMR. The trisaccharide repeating unit of the EPS is constituted by a N-acetyl quinovosamine unit and two residues of galacturonic acid both decorated with alanine. In addition, the EPS was tested in vitro showing a significant inhibitory effect on ice recrystallization. In-depth NMR and computational analysis suggest a pseudohelicoidal structure which seems to prevent the local tetrahedral order of the water molecules in the first hydration shell, and could be responsible of the inhibition of ice recrystallization. As cell cryopreservation is an essential tool in modern biotechnology and medicine, the observations reported in this paper could pave the way for a biotechnological application of Colwellia EPS

Capitalist Expansion and the Decline of Common Property Ecosystems: Lessons from China, Vietnam and India

This article identifies some of the multiple processes of capitalist development through which access to common property resources and their utility for communities are undermined. Three sites in upland Asia demonstrate how patterns of exclusion are mediated by the unique and selective trajectories through which capital expands, resulting in a decline of common property ecosystems. The process is mediated by economic stress, ecological degradation and political processes such as state-sanctioned enclosure. The first case study from Shaoguan, South China, indicates how rapid capitalist industrialization has depleted the aquatic resource base, undermining the livelihoods of fishing households yet to be absorbed into the urban working class. At the second site, in Phu Yen, Vietnam, capitalist development is limited. However, indirect articulations between capitalism on the lowlands and the peasant economy of the uplands is driving the commercialization of agriculture and fishing and undermining the utility of communal river and lake ecosystems. In the third site, Buxa in West Bengal, India, there is only selective capitalist development, but patterns of resource extraction established during the colonial period and contemporary neoliberal &lsquo;conservation&rsquo; agendas have directly excluded communities from forest resources. Restrictions on access oblige them to contribute subsidized labour to local enterprises. The article thus shows how communities which are differentially integrated into the global economy are excluded from natural resources through complex means

Impact of ambient bright light on agitation in dementia

To evaluate the effect of ambient bright light therapy on agitation among institutionalized persons with dementia