The mites (Acari) associated with bark beetles in the Koli National Park in Finland

International audienceThirty-three taxa associated with Ips typographus were identified, of which fifteen species were phoretic. The most abundant species were Insectolaelaps quadrisetus (Mesostigmata), Siculobata lentonycha (Oribata), Diapterobates humeralis (Oribata), Ereynetes propescutulis (Prostigmata), Aetiophenax ipidarius (Prostigmata), and an unidentified species of Nanacarus (Astigmata). Eight species – I. quadrisetus, Proctolaelaps fiseri, Trichouropoda polytricha, Mexecheles virginiensis, A. ipidarius, E. propescutulis, Bonomoia pini, and Boletoglyphus boletophagi - and four genera - Nanacarus, Elattoma, Schwiebia, and Parawinterschmidtia – were new taxa in Finland

The Role and Value of Data in Realising Circular Business Models – a Systematic Literature Review

Peer reviewe

Future images of data in circular economy for textiles

Rapid expansion of digitalization and in the volume of data available constitutes a major driver toward circular economy. In the textile industry, with its vast quantities of waste and huge environmental impact, transformation toward such circularity is necessary but challenging. To explore how the use of data could support building sustainability-aligned pathways to circular economy of textiles, a study employing a two-round disaggregative Delphi approach (engaging 33 experts in the first round, in May 2021, and 26 in the second, in June 2021) articulated alternative images of the future. The three images, dubbed Transparency, Conflicting Interests, and Sustainable Textiles, imply that the role for data is intertwined with sustainability aspirations. The results highlight that exploiting data in pursuit of circular economy is a collaborative effort involving business value networks that include consumers and regulators. Availability and sharing of accountability-affording, meaningful data on textiles' life cycle and value network function as a key enabler. By working with the images developed, actors can better assess their circular-economy commitments, planned actions, and the consequences of these. Furthermore, the images provide a tool for mutual discussion of the development desired and of related re-sponsibilities and uncertainties.Peer reviewe

Antiarrhythmic Effects of Carvedilol and Flecainide in Cardiomyocytes Derived from Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia Patients

Mutations in the cardiac ryanodine receptor (RYR2) are the leading cause for catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT). In this study, we evaluated antiarrhythmic efficacy of carvedilol and flecainide in CPVT patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs) carrying different mutations in RYR2. iPSC-CMs were generated from skin biopsies of CPVT patients carrying exon 3 deletion and IA115 or V4653F mutation in RYR2 and of a healthy individual. Ca2+ kinetics and drug effects were studied with Fluo-4 AM indicator. Carvedilol abolished Ca2+ abnormalities in 31% of L4115F, 36% of V4653F, and 46% of exon 3 deletion carrying CPVT cardiomyocytes and flecainide 33%, 30%, and 52%, respectively. Both drugs lowered the intracellular Ca2+ level and beating rate of the cardiomyocytes significantly. Moreover, flecainide caused abnormal Ca2+ transients in 61% of controls compared to 26% of those with carvedilol. Carvedilol and flecainide were equally effective in CPVT iPSC-CMs. However, flecainide induced arrhythmias in 61% of control cells. CPVT cardiomyocytes carrying the exon 3 deletion had the most severe Ca2+ abnormalities, but they had the best response to drug therapies. According to this study, the arrhythmia-abolishing effect of neither of the drugs is optimal. iPSC-CMs provide a unique platform for testing drugs for CPVT.Peer reviewe

A small population of an endemic mite species of the Gondwanan genus Austrotritia in Finland (Acari, Oribatida: Oribotritiidae).

The ptyctimous oribatid species, Austrotritia finlandica Niedbała &amp; Penttinen, 2006, was described in Finland as the single representative of the genus in Europe. The main area of distribution of the Gondwanan genus Austrotritia covers the Oriental, Australian and southeastern Palaearctic Regions. In order to describe the more exact distribution and habitat of A. finlandica, more localities were studied in 2008-2012. Four hundred soil samples were studied from the southwestern archipelago and the islets along the Finnish coast of the Baltic Sea, and sixty tree hollows on an island. The number of records of the species increased from four to thirteen. Most of the islets where it was found were characterized by their small size (less than 1km2) and remote location. It is concluded that a small but permanent population of Austrotritia finlandica lives in a limited area in the SW archipelago of Finland.</p

Cancer Risk Near a Polluted River in Finland

The River Kymijoki in southern Finland is heavily polluted with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans and may pose a health threat to local residents, especially farmers. In this study we investigated cancer risk in people living near the river (< 20.0 km) in 1980. We used a geographic information system, which stores registry data, in 500 m × 500 m grid squares, from the Population Register Centre, Statistics Finland, and Finnish Cancer Registry. From 1981 to 2000, cancer incidence in all people (N = 188,884) and in farmers (n = 11,132) residing in the study area was at the level expected based on national rates. Relative risks for total cancer and 27 cancer subtypes were calculated by distance of individuals to the river in 1980 (reference: 5.0–19.9 km, 1.0–4.9 km, < 1.0 km), adjusting for sex, age, time period, socioeconomic status, and distance of individuals to the sea. The respective relative risks for total cancer were 1.00, 1.09 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.04–1.13], and 1.04 (95% CI, 0.99–1.09) among all residents, and 1.00, 0.99 (95% CI, 0.85–1.15), and 1.13 (95% CI, 0.97–1.32) among farmers. A statistically significant increase was observed for basal cell carcinoma of the skin (not included in total cancers) in all residents < 5.0 km. Several other common cancers, including cancers of the breast, uterine cervix, gallbladder, and nervous system, showed slightly elevated risk estimates at < 5.0 km from the river. Despite the limitations of exposure assessment, we cannot exclude the possibility that residence near the river may have contributed to a small increase in cancer risk, especially among farmers

Intra-Cavity Frequency-Doubled VECSEL System for Narrow Linewidth Rydberg EIT Spectroscopy

Vertical external-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VECSELs) augmented by intra-cavity nonlinear optical frequency conversion have emerged as an attractive light source of ultraviolet to visible light for demanding scientific applications, relative to other laser technologies. They offer high power, low phase noise, wide frequency tunability, and excellent beam quality in a simple and inexpensive system architecture. Here, we characterize the frequency stability of an intra-cavity frequency-doubled VECSEL with 690 mW of output power at 475 nm using the delayed self-heterodyne technique and direct comparison with a commercial external-cavity diode laser (ECDL). We measure the fundamental's Lorentzian linewidth to be $2\pi\times5.3(2)$ kHz, and the total linewidth to be $2\pi\times23(2)$ kHz. In addition, we perform Rydberg-state spectroscopy via electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT), observing narrow 3.5 MHz full-width half-maximum EIT. By doing so, we demonstrate that intra-cavity frequency-doubled VECSELs can perform precision spectroscopy at the MHz level, and are a promising tool for contemporary, and future, quantum technologies.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure