A world of gorse: persistence of Ulex europaeus in managed landscapes

Gorse (Ulex europeus L.) is a woody legume and invasive woody weed that has been introduced to temperate pastoral landscapes worldwide. Despite the apparent cosmopolitan distribution of Gorse across much of the temperate agroecological landscapes of the world, research and practice pertaining to the management of Gorse has been largely constrained to single-treatments, regions or timeframes. Gorse eradication has been widely attempted, with limited success. Using the PRISMA method, and a quasi-metanalytical approach, we reviewed the seminal ~299 papers pertaining to Gorse management. We identified (a) the ecological characteristics of the species that predispose Gorse to behaving invasively, and (b) the success of management actions (from a plant ecological life history perspective) in reducing weed vigour and impact. A broad ecological niche, high reproductive output, propagule persistence and low vulnerability to pests allow for rapid landscape exploitation by Gorse throughout much the world. Additionally, there are differences in flowering duration and season in the northern and Southern Hemisphere that make gorse particularly pernicious in the latter, because Gorse flowers twice per year. The implications of these life history stages and resistance to environmental sieves after establishment are that activity and efficacy of control is more likely to be favourable in juvenile stages. Common approaches to Gorse control, including herbicides, biological controls and fire have not been ubiquitously successful, and may in fact target the very site resources – sward cover, soil stability, hydrological balance – that, when degraded, facilitate Gorse invasion. Ongoing seedling regeneration presents difficulties if eradication is a goal, but facilitated competition may reduce costs via natural suppression. Mechanical methods of Gorse removal, though highly successful, induce chronic soil erosion and land degradation and should hence be used sparingly

Tasmanian reserve geoconservation inventory assessment using Geographic Information Technology (GIT)

Geoconservation is, at its foundation, a grass-roots movement with geoheritage represented by geosites containing the most scientifically significant and valuable geodiversity elements. Problems arise in the assessment and communication of inventory due in part to inconsistent and traditionally time-consuming, ‘snapshot’ assessments that are difficult to spatially monitor.The case study of kunanyi/Mount Wellington and the encompassing IUCN Category II Wellington Park Reserve (18,250 ha) (42°53′24″ S 147°13′48″ E, Tasmania, Australia) was chosen to explore the complexities of geosite and geodiversity site assessment, detection and communication. Using digital tools, we revised a 25-year-old snapshot inventory, configuring the ESRI ‘Collector for ArcGIS’ app for in-field data collection. Putative geosite and geodiversity site attributes were assessed for scientific value, potential touristic use, and potential educational use, using theBrilha (2016) method. Additional digital tools supported spatially accurate, engaging and interactive online inventory.Our findings suggested that many of the putative geosites in the park had low or moderate scientific values, but higher additional educational or touristic use values, especially in the urban-facing park zones. Though site degradation risk was low-moderate, sites in closer proximity to City of Hobart might experience additional impacts from visitation.The Wellington Park is a significant protected area that aims to tell an important story about the evolution of the periglaciated terrain and the endemic fauna and flora that depend upon it. In this sense, the possibility that not all putative geosites have high scientific value (and instead, might be better classed as geodiversity sites) is of limited concern, because the myriad geodiversity elements and additional value rankings (including 50% being highly ‘representative’ elements) provide an opportunity for all who visit the park to observe a coherent story about Tasmania in an easily accessible location. The opportunities realised in the creation of the digital inventory and assessment process remedy many issues that currently hamper practical Geoconservation, improving cost, consistency and standardisation of the inventory assessment and the quality of geotouristic and educational products. This digital approach could assist protected area managers and geoconservationists to monitor, protect and communicate inventory over the long-term

Prefrontal cortex output circuits guide reward seeking through divergent cue encoding

The prefrontal cortex is a critical neuroanatomical hub for controlling motivated behaviours across mammalian species. In addition to intra-cortical connectivity, prefrontal projection neurons innervate subcortical structures that contribute to reward-seeking behaviours, such as the ventral striatum and midline thalamus. While connectivity among these structures contributes to appetitive behaviours, how projection-specific prefrontal neurons encode reward-relevant information to guide reward seeking is unknown. Here we use in vivo two-photon calcium imaging to monitor the activity of dorsomedial prefrontal neurons in mice during an appetitive Pavlovian conditioning task. At the population level, these neurons display diverse activity patterns during the presentation of reward-predictive cues. However, recordings from prefrontal neurons with resolved projection targets reveal that individual corticostriatal neurons show response tuning to reward-predictive cues, such that excitatory cue responses are amplified across learning. By contrast, corticothalamic neurons gradually develop new, primarily inhibitory responses to reward-predictive cues across learning. Furthermore, bidirectional optogenetic manipulation of these neurons reveals that stimulation of corticostriatal neurons promotes conditioned reward-seeking behaviour after learning, while activity in corticothalamic neurons suppresses both the acquisition and expression of conditioned reward seeking. These data show how prefrontal circuitry can dynamically control reward-seeking behaviour through the opposing activities of projection-specific cell populations

Pyogenic spondylitis

Pyogenic spondylitis is a neurological and life threatening condition. It encompasses a broad range of clinical entities, including pyogenic spondylodiscitis, septic discitis, vertebral osteomyelitis, and epidural abscess. The incidence though low appears to be on the rise. The diagnosis is based on clinical, radiological, blood and tissue cultures and histopathological findings. Most of the cases can be treated non-operatively. Surgical treatment is required in 10–20% of patients. Anterior decompression, debridement and fusion are generally recommended and instrumentation is acceptable after good surgical debridement with postoperative antibiotic cover

Spinal infection: state of the art and management algorithm

Spinal infection is a rare pathology although a concerning rising incidence has been observed in recent years. This increase might reflect a progressively more susceptible population but also the availability of increased diagnostic accuracy. Yet, even with improved diagnosis tools and procedures, the delay in diagnosis remains an important issue. This review aims to highlight the importance of a methodological attitude towards accurate and prompt diagnosis using an algorithm to aid on spinal infection management. METHODS: Appropriate literature on spinal infection was selected using databases from the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. RESULTS: Literature reveals that histopathological analysis of infected tissues is a paramount for diagnosis and must be performed routinely. Antibiotic therapy is transversal to both conservative and surgical approaches and must be initiated after etiological diagnosis. Indications for surgical treatment include neurological deficits or sepsis, spine instability and/or deformity, presence of epidural abscess and upon failure of conservative treatment. CONCLUSIONS: A methodological assessment could lead to diagnosis effectiveness of spinal infection. Towards this, we present a management algorithm based on literature findings