Analyzing the frequency shift of physiadsorbed CO2 in metal organic framework materials

Combining first-principles density functional theory simulations with IR and Raman experiments, we determine the frequency shift of vibrational modes of CO2 when physiadsorbed in the iso-structural metal organic framework materials Mg-MOF74 and Zn-MOF74. Surprisingly, we find that the resulting change in shift is rather different for these two systems and we elucidate possible reasons. We explicitly consider three factors responsible for the frequency shift through physiabsorption, namely (i) the change in the molecule length, (ii) the asymmetric distortion of the CO$_2$ molecule, and (iii) the direct influence of the metal center. The influence of each factor is evaluated separately through different geometry considerations, providing a fundamental understanding of the frequency shifts observed experimentally.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure

Photorespiration: metabolic pathways and their role in stress protection

Photorespiration results from the oxygenase reaction catalysed by ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/ oxygenase. In this reaction glycollate-2-phosphate is produced and subsequently metabolized in the photorespiratory pathway to form the Calvin cycle intermediate glycerate-3-phosphate. During this metabolic process, CO2 and NH3 are produced and ATP and reducing equivalents are consumed, thus making photorespiration a wasteful process. However, precisely because of this ine¤ciency, photorespiration could serve as an energy sink preventing the overreduction of the photosynthetic electron transport chain and photoinhibition, especially under stress conditions that lead to reduced rates of photosynthetic CO2 assimilation. Furthermore, photorespiration provides metabolites for other metabolic processes, e.g. glycine for the synthesis of glutathione, which is also involved in stress protection. In this review, we describe the use of photorespiratory mutants to study the control and regulation of photorespiratory pathways. In addition, we discuss the possible role of photorespiration under stress conditions, such as drought, high salt concentrations and high light intensities encountered by alpine plants

Bioavailability of lysine from hydroxymethyl lysine

Twelve mature sheep were used as a ruminant model to estimate the bioavailability of lysine in hydroxymethyl lysine (HML) compared with a commercial product of rumen-protected lysine (RPL; LysiPEARL, Kemin Industries, Inc.) with known availability. The sheep were fed a diet with a forage to concentrate ratio similar to that of dairy diets. Following a control period in which plasma lysine was measured when sheep received no supplemental lysine, the sheep were provided 2 of 4 treatments during periods 2 and 3; treatments included RPL to provide 3 or 6 g/day of available lysine (actual amounts of product provided were based on the manufacturer\u27s data related to ruminal escape and intestinal availability) and 3 or 6 g/day of lysine provided as HML. Blood samples were collected at the end of each feeding period at 3 hours after feeding. Both HML and RPL significantly increased plasma lysine concentrations. By comparison with plasma lysine concentrations when known amounts of bioavailable lysine were provided as RPL, the bioavailability of lysine in HML was estimated to be 94%. Results indicate that HML may be an effective means of supplementing lysine to dairy cattle.; Dairy Day, 2010, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 2010; Dairy Research, 2010 is known as Dairy Day, 201

Investigations on natural hazards which trigger technological disasters in Romania

Romania faces the challenges of a developing country preparing to cope with disasters, be they natural or technological. The paper entails comprehensive research on technological accidents triggered by natural hazards (so-called Natech accidents). The research is based on a survey conducted by the competent authorities on the Seveso II Directive in 2009. This survey enabled the identification of Natech hazards and their correlation with the vulnerability of local communities and infrastructures. The Natech hazards were analyzed also in terms of their inclusion in the emergency planning process, starting from the current legislation. The results indicate that the number of incidents (including Natech events) has significantly decreased subsequent to the appropriate implementation of emergency plans and safety reports

Re-Emerging Vaccine-Preventable Diseases in War-Affected Peoples of the Eastern Mediterranean Region\u2014An Update

For the past few decades, the Eastern Mediterranean Region has been one area of the world profoundly shaped by war and political instability. On-going conflict and destruction have left the region struggling with innumerable health concerns that have claimed the lives of many. Wars, and the chaos they leave behind, often provide the optimal conditions for the growth and re-emergence of communicable diseases. In this article, we highlight a few of the major re-emerging vaccine preventable diseases in four countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region that are currently affected by war leading to a migration crisis: Iraq, South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. We will also describe the impact these infections have had on patients, societies, and national health care services. This article also describes the efforts, both local and international, which have been made to address these crises, as well as future endeavors that can be done to contain and control further devastation left by these diseases

Farmer perspectives on administrative burdens and potential compensation structures: A short summary report of farmer interviews from spring 2022. Vermont Payment for Ecosystem Services Technical Research Report # 3c

Interviews with 35 Vermont farmers explored their perspectives on compensation associated with a soil health payment for ecosystem services (PES) program in 2022. This report summarizes thematic analysis of those interviews. Farmers’ willingness to participate in a soil health PES is linked to both the burden of enrollment paperwork and the payment level, among other factors. If deciding whether to participate in a soil health PES program, nearly all farmers said they would weigh the time and energy put into the administrative workload against the perceived benefits and value of the program, i.e., the payment level or technical assistance provided. Farmers appreciate straightforward program applications and paperwork that are aligned with their interests and schedules. Understandable language and access to technical assistance is also important to farmers when applying to programs and/or handling paperwork. A PES program should be as straightforward as possible to ease administrative burdens. At a minimum, compensation should reflect the paperwork and engagement burden for farmers. 100% of the farmers we interviewed highly valued soil health on their farms. Most farmers liked the idea of a PES program which compensates them for soils with good health. They appreciated how a program could enable and/or incentive them to maintain or improve soil health on their farms. Farmers identified the importance for a soil health program to consider differences between farms and soils when setting reasonable performance expectations and payment rates. Farmers expressed a wide variety of different perspectives and preferences about what payment rates would be meaningful to them in a PES program. There did not seem to be a ‘one-size-fits- all’ level of payment, and associating payment levels with soil health metrics proved challenging for some farmers. While many farmers were able to provide estimates of the level of payment they would be willing to accept, some were either unwilling or unable to determine appropriate levels of payment based on soil health metrics. Most farmers thought about the investment of time and resources needed when thinking about payment rates. Overall, the average level of payment that would be meaningful at the whole farm level described by interviewees was $9,322.00 per farm. However, significant differences in payment levels were detected by farm acreage. Farmers with fewer acres tended to require higher per acre payment rates than farmers with more acres. Conversely, farmers with larger acreage tended to require higher total payment. Approximately 90% of farmers interviewed were supportive of per acre payments in a soil health PES program. Nearly 50% of interviewees expressed concerns about how undifferentiated per acre payment rates across different farm types would favor the participation of farms with more acres and those which were less intensively managed. The potential value of a soil health PES program was widely recognized to be more than just monetary. Farmers expressed interest in both the monetary and non-monetary benefits that a potential program might offer them. Most were interested in the program providing some combination of financial payments, access to farm-specific data, connection to a farmer network/learning community, and technical assistance

Trajectories through semantic spaces in schizophrenia and the relationship to ripple bursts

Human cognition is underpinned by structured internal representations that encode relationships between entities in the world (cognitive maps). Clinical features of schizophrenia-from thought disorder to delusions-are proposed to reflect disorganization in such conceptual representations. Schizophrenia is also linked to abnormalities in neural processes that support cognitive map representations, including hippocampal replay and high-frequency ripple oscillations. Here, we report a computational assay of semantically guided conceptual sampling and exploit this to test a hypothesis that people with schizophrenia (PScz) exhibit abnormalities in semantically guided cognition that relate to hippocampal replay and ripples. Fifty-two participants [26 PScz (13 unmedicated) and 26 age-, gender-, and intelligence quotient (IQ)-matched nonclinical controls] completed a category- and letter-verbal fluency task, followed by a magnetoencephalography (MEG) scan involving a separate sequence-learning task. We used a pretrained word embedding model of semantic similarity, coupled to a computational model of word selection, to quantify the degree to which each participant's verbal behavior was guided by semantic similarity. Using MEG, we indexed neural replay and ripple power in a post-task rest session. Across all participants, word selection was strongly influenced by semantic similarity. The strength of this influence showed sensitivity to task demands (category > letter fluency) and predicted performance. In line with our hypothesis, the influence of semantic similarity on behavior was reduced in schizophrenia relative to controls, predicted negative psychotic symptoms, and correlated with an MEG signature of hippocampal ripple power (but not replay). The findings bridge a gap between phenomenological and neurocomputational accounts of schizophrenia

Rejection of human intestinal allografts: Alone or in combination with the liver

The current results of the present series demonstrate that intestinal allografts are more vulnerable to rejection and continue to be at a significantly higher risk long after transplantation compared with isolated liver allograft recipients. Unexpectedly, a combined liver allograft does not protect small bowel from rejection. The necessarily continuous heavy immunosuppression for these unique recipients is potentially self-defeating. This is clearly demonstrated by their high susceptibility to early and late infectious complications after transplantation as reported in this issue. With the minimal graft-versus-host disease threat in this clinical trial, our revised protocol for future intestinal transplantation is to maximize the passenger leukocyte traffic with supplementary bone marrow from the same intestinal donor in an attempt to augment the development of systemic chimerism and the gradual induction of donor-specific nonreactivity