Late Messinian palynoflora from Central Anatolian Plateau (Çankırı Basin)

ABSTRACTWithin the framework of the Marie Curie FP7-PEOPLE-2013-ITN program, the ALErT project targets on tectonic and climatic boundary conditions in the regions along the densely populated in the Central Anatolian Plateau and the associated with natural hazards. The Central Anatolian Plateau (CAP) extends in a wide area in between zone the Aegean extensional zone and Bitlis /Zagros compressional zone. The Çankırı Basin was opened in Late Cretaceous between the Kırşehir block in the south and Sakarya continents in the north in central Anatolia. During the Neo-Tethys closure, the history of the basin became a large intermontane basin which covered with continental sedimentary environments (Kazancı et al., 1999). During the Late Miocene, there were different types of lacustrine environments in between the northern and southern parts. Age evidence of the Çankırı Basin has been obtained from the European mammalian faunal zones, because of the fact that Sr analysis results has not be significant to interpreted age (Mazzini 2015) and based on this, the late Messinian age Bozkır Formation and the Plio – Quaternary Değim Formation have seasonally dominant aridity. To figure out the paleoenvironmental and palaeoclimate changes in Çankırı Basin were analyzed Biotic (Paynology) and abiotic proxy data (geochemical, δ18O - δ13C isotopes analyses and CaCO3). Fifteen samples from Hancili Formation, Tuglu Suleymanli crossing border, Bozkır Formation and Değim Formation were collected from claystone, dark silty clay, gypsum and breccia with silty gypsum layers in the Çankırı Basin. The samples were treated standard palynological procedures described by Cour (1974). For pollen step all samples, residues, and slides are stored in Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia. Pollen grains for each sample were accounted 150 pollen grains, without Pinus in the Çankırı Basin. Pollen identification was performed under a Zeiss light microscope, and under a Quanta FEG250 Scanning electron microscope (SEM) used for high resolution imaging of pollen grains in Institute of Electrical Engineering Slovak Academy of Sciences. The pollen diagram was prepared with Tilia*Graph (2.0) (http://www.chrono.qub.ac.uk/datah/tilia.html).According to Mosbrugger and Utescher (1997); coexistence approach derived quantative paleoclimate parameters. To explain the ecological characteristic, we used version of the Past 3.x- the Past of the Future free software scientific statistical data analysis program (http://folk.uio.no/ohammer/past/). Head map was prepared with this program for four formations. Palynological data by evaluating head map, the uplift during the Late Messinian in Çankırı Basin has been confirmed. To illustrate for those vegetational composition, we applied Xact 8 for the graphic presentation. According to Traverse (1978) developed Steppe-Forest Index using a ratio of appropriate species of pollen, that save as a climatic indicator (warm to cold) on the other hand interpretation of aridity we follow Cour & Duzer (1978). As a consequence, the Poaceae/total Asteraceae ratio in a pollen diagram can be used as a climate index used Poaceae /Asteraceae ratio to find out dry to wet zones lines (Popescu, 2006) and it was calculated based on palynological results (using cluster analysis) show four climate cycles with three dry periods. Based on those calculations we confirmed long term cooling trend during Late Messinian to Plio-Pleistocene in Çankırı Basin. In most pollen spectra are mainly presented by Asteraceae, Chenopodiaceae, and Poaceae and by trees with Pinus, Cathaya, and Fagus. The group of herbs is important in the pollen sum and mainly consist of Poaceae, Chenopodiaceae and Asteraceae, which document open grassland type of vegetation with warm – temperate climate. 

Early-infantile onset epilepsy and developmental delay caused by bi-allelic GAD1 variants.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate are the most abundant amino acid neurotransmitters in the brain. GABA, an inhibitory neurotransmitter, is synthesized by glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD). Its predominant isoform GAD67, contributes up to ∼90% of base-level GABA in the CNS, and is encoded by the GAD1 gene. Disruption of GAD1 results in an imbalance of inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters, and as Gad1-/- mice die neonatally of severe cleft palate, it has not been possible to determine any potential neurological dysfunction. Furthermore, little is known about the consequence of GAD1 disruption in humans. Here we present six affected individuals from six unrelated families, carrying bi-allelic GAD1 variants, presenting with developmental and epileptic encephalopathy, characterized by early-infantile onset epilepsy and hypotonia with additional variable non-CNS manifestations such as skeletal abnormalities, dysmorphic features and cleft palate. Our findings highlight an important role for GAD1 in seizure induction, neuronal and extraneuronal development, and introduce GAD1 as a new gene associated with developmental and epileptic encephalopathy

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Top management teams and corporate political activity: Do top management teams have influence on corporate political activity?

This study explores how senior executives affect firms' propensity to engage in political activity. I propose that firms' participation in the political process depends on their senior executives' involvement in political activity. I examine this framework using data on the campaign contributions of 151 U.S. manufacturing firms during the years 1999-2002. The results suggest that senior executives' involvement in a particular political activity affects their firms' commitment to that political activity, contingent on CEO tenure and top management team heterogeneity.Corporate political activity Top management team heterogeneity CEO tenure

Spatial distribution of climatic conditions from the Middle Eocene to Late Miocene based on palynoflora in Central, Eastern and Western Anatolia

The continental climatic evolution of Anatolia has been reconstructed quantitatively for the last 45 million years using the coexistence approach. Although there were some regional effects, the Anatolian Cenozoic continental climate record correlated with the European climatic condition and the global oxygen isotope record from marine environments. From middle Eocene to late Miocene, continental warming in Anatolia was pronounced for inferred winter temperature and mean annual temperature as in Europe. Generally, the palaeoclimatic property of Anatolia resembles the European climatic changing and marine temperature changing based on the oxygen isotope record; however, climatic values of the terrestrial area in Anatolia are higher from Lutetian to Aquitanian and these values are lower than European values from Aquitanian to Tortonian. Correspondingly, Cenozoic climatic cooling in Anatolia is directly associated with an increase of seasonality, palaeogeographic position and terrestrial condition. Furthermore, mean annual precipitation values of Anatolia remained relatively stable during the Eocene-Oligocene; however, these values indicated changing throughout middle-late Miocene. Moreover, in this study, decline of abundance and variables for the mangrove and back mangrove palaeocommunities during the last 45 million years is recorded because of the decreasing of humidity, temperature and increasing of terrestrial condition

When Do Firms Prefer Individual Action to Collective Action in The Pursuit of Corporate Political Strategy? A New Perspective on Industry Concentration

In this study we advance the current research on corporate political strategy by examining how firms decide on their level of engagement in political action. This study proposes a contingency approach that identifies conditions in which firms prefer individual action to collective action in their pursuit of political strategy and introduces a framework that addresses this preference. Our results show that even in concentrated industries, a firm's preference of individual action over collective action varies when government contracts or research and development intensity are important considerations.

The Effect of Creative Culture on Corporate Social Responsibility

We examine how creative culture affects the corporate social responsibility (CSR) records of companies. To measure local creative culture, we use the fraction of the local creative class—including intellectuals and artists—working in knowledge-intensive industries. We argue that companies located in areas densely populated by the creative class should exhibit better CSR records to maintain their legitimacy. Using data from the US Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, which refines and revises Florida’s (2002a,b) creative class measure, we find firms in areas with strong creative cultures have higher levels of CSR engagement, after controlling for alternative explanations and endogeneity concerns

The Use And Importance Of Liposomes In Positron Emission Tomography

Among different imaging modalities, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) gained importance in routine hospital practice depending on ability to diagnose diseases in early stages and tracing of therapy by obtaining metabolic information. The combination of PET with Computed Tomography (CT) forms hybrid imaging modality that gives chance to obtain better images having higher resolution by fusing both functional and anatomical images in the same imaging modality at the same time. Therefore, better contrast agents are essentially needed. The advance in research about developing drug delivery systems as specific nanosized targeted systems gained an additional importance for obtaining better diagnosis and therapy of different diseases. Liposomes appear to be more attractive drug delivery systems in delivering either drugs or imaging ligands to target tissue or organ of diseases with higher accumulation by producing in nano-scale, long circulating by stealth effect and specific targeting by modifying with specific ligands or markers. The combination of positron emitting radionuclides with liposomes are commonly in research level nowadays and there is no commercially available liposome formulation for PET imaging. However by conjugating positron emitter radionuclide with liposomes can form promising diagnostic agents for improved diagnosis and following up treatments by increasing image signal/contrast in the target tissue in lower concentrations by specific targeting as the most important advantage of liposomes. More accurate and earlier diagnosis of several diseases can be obtained even in molecular level with the use of stable and effectively radiolabeled molecular target specific nano sized liposomes with longer half-lived positron emitting radionuclides.WoSScopu

Case Report: Pregnancy Associated Uterine Prolapse

Ozer, Alev/0000-0002-0934-0226WOS: 000376567100031Uterine prolapse that appears for the first time during pregnancy is a rarely encountered clinical entity, complicating 1 in 10000 to 1 in 15000 deliveries. A 30-year-old, gravida 3, para 2 woman with a 35-week-old pregnancy who was admitted to the study center was diagnosed with stage III C uterine prolapse according to the Pelvic Organ Prolapse Quantification System. Bed rest in the Trendelenburg position and administration of saline soaks for the reduction of cervical edema were recommended for the palliative treatment of the patient. Five weeks later, a healthy male baby with a birthweight of 3500 grams was delivered by cesarean section. Appropriate management of pregnancy-associated uterine prolapse consists of conservative treatment modalities throughout pregnancy