PALEO-PGEM v1.0: a statistical emulator of Pliocene–Pleistocene climate

We describe the development of the “Paleoclimate PLASIM-GENIE (Planet Simulator–Grid-Enabled Integrated Earth system model) emulator” PALEO-PGEM and its application to derive a downscaled high-resolution spatio-temporal description of the climate of the last 5×106 years. The 5×106-year time frame is interesting for a range of paleo-environmental questions, not least because it encompasses the evolution of humans. However, the choice of time frame was primarily pragmatic; tectonic changes can be neglected to first order, so that it is reasonable to consider climate forcing restricted to the Earth's orbital configuration, ice-sheet state, and the concentration of atmosphere CO2. The approach uses the Gaussian process emulation of the singular value decomposition of ensembles of the intermediate-complexity atmosphere–ocean GCM (general circulation model) PLASIM-GENIE. Spatial fields of bioclimatic variables of surface air temperature (warmest and coolest seasons) and precipitation (wettest and driest seasons) are emulated at 1000-year intervals, driven by time series of scalar boundary-condition forcing (CO2, orbit, and ice volume) and assuming the climate is in quasi-equilibrium. Paleoclimate anomalies at climate model resolution are interpolated onto the observed modern climatology to produce a high-resolution spatio-temporal paleoclimate reconstruction of the Pliocene–Pleistocene

Developing tools for the e-learning platform mathE

MathE (mathe.pixel-online.org) is an e-learning platform for higher education developed and implemented by a consortium of seven institutional partners from five European countries. The aim of the project is to enhance the quality of teaching and improve pedagogies and assessment methods by facilitating the identification of students’ gaps in Math, providing appropriate digital tools and promoting self-evaluation with immediate feedback. The Polytechnic Institute of Bragança (IPB), in Portugal, is one of the consortium members: sixteen of its teachers collaborate in the development of this platform, being responsible for thirteen of the topics/subtopics in which the platform is structured. Such topics cover a wide range of contents, from linear transformations to integration, from graph theory to probabilities. The articulation of the topics of the MathE collection corresponds to the canonic mathematics content of engineering, business and education degrees. The MathE platform is organized into three main sections: Student´s Assessment, MathE Library and Community of Practice. So far, IPB has already developed a collection of around 800 questions for the student´s assessment section and is currently developing the MathE Library. More than 350 students from IPB are using the MathE platform; some offered as volunteers, whose role is testing the behavior of the platform as well as looking for bugs and other details that require improvement, while others are already using the platform in their study. The feedback received up until now is quite encouraging.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effect of increasing levels of aluminium on roots of rice grown in nutrient solution

Em casa de vegetação foi estudado o efeito de níveis crescentes de alumínio (0 ppm, 0,5 ppm, 1 ppm, 2 ppm, 4 ppm e 8 ppm) na CTC, volume e peso seco das raízes de arroz (Oryza sativa L.) (IAC-25) em solução nutritiva. Os tratamentos foram realizados quinze dias após a emergência. Semanalmente era trocada a solução e medidos o pH (antes da troca) e teores de Al+++ Com três semanas, as plantas foram colhidas e secadas em estufa, pesando-se raiz e parte aérea. O peso da parte aérea aumentou com doses crescentes de Al, como máximo a 8 ppm de Al. O peso de raízes não diferiu significativamente nos três níveis mais elevados de Al. O Al não afetou o número de perfilhos, mas resultou em aumento do volume das raízes. A capacidade de troca de cátions (CTC) das raízes caiu significativamente, com os níveis crescentes de Al. Com 8 ppm a CTC das raízes foi 48,6% da CTC da testemunha. Observaram- se correlações positivas entre o peso seco da parte aérea, o pH final da solução (r = 0,960**) e o volume das raízes (r = 0,910*). Foram observadas correlações negativas entre a CTC das raízes, o peso seco da parte aérea (r = -0,970**) e o volume das raízes (r =0,970**). Atribui-se a redução da CTC das raízes ao bloqueio não reversível de cargas negativas pelo Al, o que teria aumentado as atividades de H2PO-4 e NO-3 ao nível da plasmalema favorecendo o crescimento das plantas.The effect of aluminium levels (0 ppm, 0.5 ppm, 1 ppm, 2 ppm, 4 ppm and 8 ppm) on the growth of rice (Oryza sativa L.) (IAC-25) was studied under greenhouse conditions. Treatments were applied fifteen days after seed germination. Weekly, pH and Al+++ levels were measured, and the nutrient solution was changed. After three weeks plants were harvested, oven dried, and shoots and roots weighted. The dry weight of the shoots increased with increasing Al level in solution, reaching a maximum at the 8 ppm level. The dry weight of roots also increased but differences were not significant among the three highest levels of Al. Al levels did not affect the tiller number but led to an increase in root volume. Root cation exchange capacity (CEC) decreased significantly with increasing Al levels. At 8 ppm, CEC was only 48,6% in relation to control. There were positive correlations between shoot dry weights, solution pH (r = 0.960**) and root volume (r = 0.910*). Correlations were negative between root CTC, shoot dry weight (r = 0.970**) and root volume (r = -0.970**). The decrease of the CEC of roots may be due to the irreversible blocking of root charges by Al. The positive effect of Al on plant growth, was considered to be due to this blocking of charges on the activity of H2PO-4 and NO-3 at the plasmalemma

TESS asteroseismology of the known red-giant host stars HD 212771 and HD 203949

International audienc

Low prevalence of renal, cardiac, pulmonary, and neurological extra-articular clinical manifestations in spondyloarthritis: analysis of the Brazilian Registry of Spondyloarthritis

OBJECTIVE: To describe the extra-articular manifestations (cardiac, renal, pulmonary, and neurological), usually not related to spondyloarthritis (SpA), in a large cohort of Brazilian patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed 1,472 patients diagnosed with SpA and cared for at 29 health care centers distributed in the five major geographic regions in the country, participating in the Brazilian Registry of Spondyloarthritis (BRS). All patients were assessed for the prevalence of major extra-articular manifestations (cardiac, renal, pulmonary, and neurological), classified according to the diagnosis [ankylosing spondylitis (AS), psoriatic arthritis (PsA), reactive arthritis (ReA), arthritis associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), undifferentiated spondyloarthritis (uSpA), and juvenile SpA], and according to the clinical presentation (axial, peripheral, mixed, and enthesitis). RESULTS: Of the patients with SpA assessed, 963 had AS, 271 PsA, 49 ReA, 48 arthritis associated with IBD, 98 uSpA, and 43 juvenile SpA. Cardiac involvement was reported in 44 patients (3.0%), pulmonary involvement in 19 (1.3%), renal involvement in 17 (1.2%), and neurological involvement in 13 patients (0.9%). Most patients with visceral involvement had AS or PsA, and the mixed (axial + peripheral) and/or predominantly axial clinical form. CONCLUSION: Cardiac, renal, pulmonary, and neurological extra-articular manifestations are quite infrequent in SpA, ranging from 0.9% to 3% in this large Brazilian cohort, and affected predominantly patients with AS and PsA.OBJETIVO: Descrever as manifestações extra-articulares (cardíacas, renais, pulmonares e neurológicas) geralmente não relacionadas às espondiloartrites (EpA) em uma grande coorte de pacientes brasileiros. MÉTODOS: Este estudo retrospectivo analisou 1.472 pacientes com o diagnóstico de EpA atendidos em 29 centros distribuídos pelas cinco principais regiões geográficas do Brasil, integrantes do Registro Brasileiro de Espondiloartrites. Todos os pacientes foram avaliados para a prevalência das principais manifestações extra-articulares (cardíacas, renais, pulmonares e neurológicas), divididas por diagnóstico [espondilite anquilosante (EA), artrite psoriásica (AP), artrite reativa (ARe), artrite associada a doença inflamatória intestinal (DII), EpA indiferenciada (EI) e EpA juvenil] e por forma clínica (axial, periférica, mista e entesítica). RESULTADOS: Dentre os pacientes avaliados com EpA, 963 apresentavam EA, 271 AP, 49 ARe, 48 artrite associada a DII, 98 EI e 43 EpA juvenil. Acometimento cardíaco foi observado em 44 pacientes (3,0%), seguido por acometimento pulmonar em 19 (1,3%), renal em 17 (1,2%) e neurológico em 13 pacientes (0,9%). A maioria dos casos de acometimento visceral ocorreu nos pacientes com EA ou AP e naqueles com forma clínica mista (axial e periférica) e/ou predominantemente axial. CONCLUSÃO: As manifestações extra-articulares cardíacas, renais, pulmonares e neurológicas são muito pouco frequentes nas EpA, variando de 0,9%-3% nesta grande coorte brasileira, estando mais associadas a EA e AP.37938

Oxidative damage and photosynthetic impairment in tropical rice cultivars upon exposure to excess iron

ABSTRACT Iron plays a pivotal role in the redox reactions of photosynthesis and metabolic processes such as chlorophyll synthesis. Iron availability in waterlogged soils can reach toxic levels and promote oxidative stress. Fe toxicity is the most concerning of stresses for rice in many lowland environments around the world and may cause severe impairments in rice photosynthesis. This study aimed to investigate the extension of oxidative stress after excess Fe exposure and its effects on the photosynthesis of rice cultivars with differential sensitivity. Three Brazilian rice cultivars (EPAGRI 107, BRSMG SELETA and BR IRGA 409) were grown in Hoagland nutrient solution (pH 4.0) with two Fe-EDTA doses corresponding to excess Fe (7 mM) and control (0.009 mM) treatments. After just three days of excess Fe exposure, there was a significant increase in iron concentration in the shoots. The BR IRGA 409 cultivar exhibited higher Fe accumulation in its shoots, and the EPAGRI 107 cultivar recorded the lowest values, which were below the critical toxicity level, as a resistance strategy. Impairment in light energy partitioning and oxidative damage became evident before changes in stomatal resistance, chlorophyll content, maximal PSII quantum yield or visual symptoms for the most sensitive cultivar (BR IRGA 409). The photosynthesis limitations, in addition to the impairment of excess energy dissipation in rice from iron toxicity, are the results of oxidative damage

Author Correction: DNA damage in circulating leukocytes measured with the comet assay may predict the risk of death (Scientific Reports, (2021), 11, 1, (16793), 10.1038/s41598-021-95976-7)

Link to the corrected article: [https://farfar.pharmacy.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/3944