Coral Recruitment Before and After Bleaching Event 2010 in Pulau Weh, Aceh, Indonesia

A monitoring study was conducted at Pulau Weh, which is located in Sabang Province Aceh, Indonesia in the northern part of Sumatera from April 2010 to April 2013. This study aims to monitor and evaluate the current status of coral reef, compotition and abundance of juvenile corals on natural substrates and recruits in the chosen sampling sites. Six sampling stations were chosen to determine the changes in coral reef after bleaching event and two stations were chosen to study coral recruitment. The survey was conducted using 5x5m permanent quadrate, placed at two different depths: 4m and 8m. Photo Quadrate method was applied to monitor the coral changes and the recovery of coral reefs in Pulau weh. Where at each sampling location within the quadrate, a series of photographs was taken with a digital camera with wide angle lens and analyzed in the laboratory. A digital probe was placed at each site, where by the temperature was recorded every 2 hours starting from April 2010 to September 2011. An increasing and extreme temperature shock was recorded in May 2010, where the highest temperature recorded was as high as 32 °C for a long duration. From the series of observation, 85% of the coral coverage in the study area in the six sampling site was found bleached and dead during the bleaching phenomena in May to July 2010. The overall number and density of juvenile corals were higher in the upper reef than the lower reef. Low coral recruitment occurred during the sampling periods interfered with disturbances (bleaching event and storm) compared to normal sampling period without disturbance.Penelitian ini dilakukan di Pulau Weh, yang terletak di Provinsi Aceh, Indonesia mulai dari bulan April 2010 sampai dengan April 2013. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memantau dan mengevaluasi status terumbu karang, komposisi dan kelimpahan juvenil karang pada substrat alami dan rekrutmen di lokasi yang sudah ditentukan. Enam stasiun pengambilan dipilih untuk melihat Perubahan terumbu karang setelah peristiwa pemutihan berlangsung dan dua stasiun dipilih untuk melihat rekrutmen karang baru. Survei ini dilakukan dengan menggunakan kuadrat permanen yang berukuran 5x5m yang ditempatkan pada dua kedalaman yang berbeda yaitu: 4m dan 8m. MetodeFoto Kuadrat diaplikasikan untuk memantau Perubahan karang dan pemulihan terumbu karang di Pulau weh setelah peristiwa pemutihan. Foto hasil pengambilan gambar dengan kamera bawah air selanjutnya dianalisis di laboratorium. Alat perekam suhu dan cahaya digital ditempatkan di setiap lokasi penelitian, dimana suhu akan direkam setiap 2 jam sekali mulai dari April 2010 sampai September 2011. Peningkatan suhu secara ekstrim telah dicatat pada bulan Mei 2010 yaitu setinggi 32 °C dalam jangka waktu yang lama. Dari serangkaian pengamatan 85% dari tutupan karang di daerah penelitian ditemukan mati disebabkan fenomena bleaching bulan Mei-Juli 2010. Jumlah keseluruhan dan kepadatan juvenile karang lebih tinggi pada terumbu bagian atas daripada karang yang lebih rendah. Rekrutmen karang yang rendah terjadi selama periode bleaching berlangsung dibandingkan dengan periode sampling normal tanpa gangguan

C‐reactive protein level as a predictor of difficult emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy

Background: Studies focused on C‐reactive protein (CRP) as a marker of difficult laparoscopic cholecystectomy are limited to small case series. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between preoperative CRP concentration and difficulty of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients admitted with a biliary emergency presentation. Methods: Patients with an emergency admission for biliary disease treated between 2012 and 2017 with a documented preoperative CRP level were analysed. Elective patients and those with other concurrent causes of increased CRP concentration were excluded. The intraoperative difficulty grade was based on the Nassar scale. Statistical analysis was conducted to determine the association of preoperative CRP level with difficulty grading, adjusted for the interval to surgery. Results: A total of 804 emergency patients were included. The mean preoperative peak CRP level was 64·7 mg/l for operative difficulty grade I, 69·6 mg/l for grade II, 98·2 mg/l for grade III, 217·5 mg/l for grade IV and 193·1 mg/l for grade V, indicating a significant association between CRP concentration and Nassar grade (P < 0·001). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis showed an area under the curve of 0·78 (95 per cent c.i. 0·75 to 0·82), differentiating patients with grade I–III from those with grade IV–V operative difficulty. ROC curve analysis found a cut‐off CRP value of 90 mg/l, with 71·5 per cent sensitivity and 70·5 per cent specificity in predicting operative difficulty of grade IV or V. Logistic regression analysis found preoperative peak CRP level to be predictive of Nassar grade I–III versus grade IV–V operative difficulty, also when adjusted for timing of surgery (odds ratio 5·90, 95 per cent c.i. 2·80 to 12·50). Conclusion: Raised preoperative CRP levels are associated with greater operative difficulty based on Nassar scale grading

Proximity fingerprint of s+- superconductivity

We suggest a straightforward and unambiguous test to identify possible opposite signs of superconducting order parameter in different bands proposed for iron-based superconductors (s+- state). We consider proximity effect in a weakly coupled sandwich composed of a s+- superconductor and thin layer of s-wave superconductor. In such system the s-wave order parameter is coupled differently with different s+- gaps and it typically aligns with one of these gaps. This forces the other s+- gap to be anti-aligned with the s-wave gap. In such situation the aligned band induces a peak in the s-wave density of states (DoS), while the anti-aligned band induces a dip. Observation of such contact-induced negative feature in the s-wave DoS would provide a definite proof for s+- superconductivity.Comment: 4 pages, one figur

Rapid mixing of viscous liquids by electrical coiling

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Revisiting port performance measurement: A hybrid multi-stakeholder framework for the modelling of port performance indicators

This study develops a new port performance measurement model by taking the perspectives from different port stakeholders. The novelty lies in the modelling of interdependencies among port performance measures, and the combination of weights of interdependent measures with both qualitative and quantitative evaluations of the measures from multiple stakeholders for quantitative port performance measurement. It represents an effective performance measurement tool and offers a diagnostic instrument for performance evaluation and/or monitoring of ports and terminals so as to satisfy different requirements of various port stakeholders in a flexible manner. © 201

Pleiotropic Role and Bidirectional Immunomodulation of Innate Lymphoid Cells in Cancer.

Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are largely tissue resident and respond rapidly toward the environmental signals from surrounding tissues and other immune cells. The pleiotropic function of ILCs in diverse contexts underpins its importance in the innate arm of immune system in human health and disease. ILCs derive from common lymphoid progenitors but lack adaptive antigen receptors and functionally act as the innate counterpart to T-cell subsets. The classification of different subtypes is based on their distinct transcription factor requirement for development as well as signature cytokines that they produce. The discovery and subsequent characterization of ILCs over the past decade have mainly focused on the regulation of inflammation, tissue remodeling, and homeostasis, whereas the understanding of the multiple roles and mechanisms of ILCs in cancer is still limited. Emerging evidence of the potent immunomodulatory properties of ILCs in early host defense signifies a major advance in the use of ILCs as promising targets in cancer immunotherapy. In this review, we will decipher the non-exclusive roles of ILCs associated with both protumor and antitumor activities. We will also dissect the heterogeneity, plasticity, genetic evidence, and dysregulation in different cancer contexts, providing a comprehensive understanding of the complexity and diversity. These will have implications for the therapeutic targeting in cancer.This work was supported by KCL Breast Cancer Now Research Unit. FF-B was funded by grant KCL-Q2-Y5 and SI was by CRUK (grant C56773/A24869)