HeProMo: A decision support tool to estimate wood harvesting productivities.

In the field of forestry, one of the most economically important ecosystem service is the provision of timber. The need to calculate the economic effects of forest management in the short, medium, and long term is increasing. Forest operations or timber harvesting, which comprises felling, processing, and transport of trees or timber, are responsible for a large part of the costs and environmental impacts associated to forest management or enterprises. From a decision maker's perspective, it is essential to estimate working productivity and production costs under given operating conditions before any operation is conducted. This work addresses the lack of a valid collection of models that allows estimating time, productivities, and costs of labor and machinery for the most important forest operations in forest stands under Central European conditions. To create such models, we used data from forest enterprises, manual time studies, and the literature. This work presents a decision support tool that estimates the wood harvesting productivities of 12 different kinds of forest operations under Central European conditions. It includes forest operations using chainsaws, harvesters, skidders, forwarders, chippers, cable and tower yarders, and helicopters. In addition, the tool covers three models for wood volume estimation. The tool is written in Java and available open-source under the Apache License. This work shows how the tool can be used by describing its graphical user interface (GUI) and its application programming interface (API) that facilitates bulk processing of scientific data. Carefully selected default values allow estimations without knowing all input variables in detail. Each model is accompanied by an in-depth documentation where the forest operation, input variables, formulas, and statistical background are given. We conclude that HeProMo is a very useful tool for applications in forest practice, research, and teaching

Residual LCMV antigen in transiently CD4; +; T cell-depleted mice induces high levels of virus-specific antibodies but only limited B-cell memory

Infection of C57BL/6 mice with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) strain Armstrong (Arm) induces an acute infection with rapid virus clearance by CD8; +; T cells independently of CD4; +; T cell help. Residual viral antigen may, however, persist for a prolonged time. Here, we demonstrate that mice that had been transiently depleted of CD4; +; T cells during acute LCMV Arm infection generated high levels of virus-specific IgG antibodies (Ab) after viral clearance. Robust induction of LCMV-specific IgG after transient CD4; +; T cell depletion was dependent on Fcγ receptors but not on the complement receptors CD21/CD35. In contrast to the potent production of LCMV-specific IgG, the generation of LCMV-specific isotype-switched memory B cells after transient CD4; +; T cell depletion was considerably reduced. Moreover, mice depleted of CD4; +; T cells during acute infection were strongly impaired in generating a secondary LCMV-specific B cell response upon LCMV rechallenge. In conclusion, our data indicate that LCMV antigen depots after viral clearance were capable of inducing high levels of virus-specific IgG. They failed, however, to induce robust virus-specific B cell memory revealing a previously unappreciated dichotomy of specific Ab production and memory cell formation after priming with residual antigen

Wood fuel in Switzerland: energy potential, technology development, resource mobilization, and its role in the energy transition: White paper

To enable the energy transition in Switzerland, SCCER BIOSWEET (i) assessed the current and future potentials of primary energy from the different woody biomass types in Switzerland; (ii) developed and implemented innovative technologies for biomass utilization in the fields of heat, electricity and fuels; and (iii) investigated the future role of woody biomass in the energy system. SCCER BIOSWEET started with the vision of 100 petajoules (PJ) of primary energy consumption per year from bioenergy by 2050, which means a doubling of the current energy consumption from biomass. According to the results of the analyses completed through SCCER BIOSWEET, this target is achievable and woody biomass could contribute 50 %. Nevertheless, with regard to resource efficiency and the decarbonization of industry and society, priority should be given to the material use of wood (cascading use), for example as chemicals produced in biorefineries. In Switzerland, the use of wood for energy would ideally include the production of high-temperature heat for industrial process heating, as well as fuels in gaseous and liquid form for ground- and air-based transportation. A further key point is the need to compensate for fluctuations in the production of other types of energy, especially solar power

Cutting Edge: Identification of E-Cadherin as a Ligand for the Murine Killer Cell Lectin-Like Receptor G1

The killer cell lectin-like receptor G1 (KLRG1) is expressed by NK cells and by T cells. In both humans and mice, KLRG1 identifies Ag-experienced T cells that are impaired in their proliferative capacity but are capable of performing effector functions. In this study, we identified E-cadherin as a ligand for murine KLRG1 by using fluorescently labeled, soluble tetrameric complexes of the extracellular domain of the murine KLRG1 molecule as staining reagents in expression cloning. Ectopic expression of E-cadherin in B16.BL6 target cells did not affect cell-mediated lysis by lymphokine-activated NK cells and by CD8 T cells but inhibited Ag-induced proliferation and induction of cytolytic activity of CD8 T cells. E-cadherin is expressed by normal epithelial cells, Langerhans cells, and keratinocytes and is usually down-regulated on metastatic cancer cells. KLRG1 ligation by E-cadherin in healthy tissue may thus exert an inhibitory effect on primed T cells