Integrating conflict, lobbying, and compliance to predict the sustainability of natural resource use

Acknowledgments: This study received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s H2020/ERC grant agreement no.679651 (ConFooBio) to N.B. A.B.D. is supported by a Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship. We are grateful to Tim Coulson and E.J. Milner-Gulland for comments on previous versions of this manuscript. All authors conceived the study, developed the underlying theory and software, discussed the results, and wrote the manuscript. J.J.C. carried out the simulations and analyzed thedata.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

GMSE: an R package for generalised management strategy evaluation

1. Management strategy evaluation (MSE) is a powerful tool for simulating all key aspects of natural resource management under conditions of uncertainty. 2. We present the R package GMSE, which applies genetic algorithms to provide a generalised tool for simulating adaptive decision‐making management scenarios between stakeholders with competing objectives under complex social‐ecological interactions and uncertainty. 3. GMSE models can be agent‐based and spatially explicit, incorporating a high degree of realism through mechanistic modelling of links and feedbacks among stakeholders and with the ecosystem; additionally, user‐defined sub‐models can also be incorporated as functions into the broader GMSE framework. 4. We show how GMSE simulates a social‐ecological system using the example of an adaptively managed waterfowl population on an agricultural landscape; simulated waterfowl exploit agricultural land, causing conflict between conservation interests and the interest of food producers maximising their crop yield. 5. The R package GMSE is open source under GNU Public License; source code and documents are freely available on GitHub

A multispecies assessment of wildlife impacts on local community livelihoods

Conflicts between the interests of agriculture and wildlife conservation are a major threat to biodiversity and human wellbeing globally. Addressing such conflicts requires a thorough understanding of the impacts associated with living alongside protected wildlife. Despite this, most studies reporting on human‐wildlife impacts and the strategies used to mitigate them focus on a single species, thus over‐simplifying often complex systems of human‐wildlife interactions. In this study, we characterize the spatiotemporal patterns of impacts by multiple co‐occurring species on agricultural livelihoods in the eastern Okavango Delta Panhandle in northern Botswana. Using a database of 3,264 wildlife incidents recorded between 2009 and 2015 by the Department of Wildlife and National Parks, we show that a total of eight species – i.e. African elephant, hippopotamus, cheetah, crocodile, leopard, lion, spotted hyena and African wild dog – appear on incident reports, of which 56.5% are attributed to elephants. Most species were associated with only one type of damage (i.e. either damage to crops or livestock loss). Carnivores were primarily implicated in incident reports related to livestock loss, particularly towards the end of the dry season (May‐October). In contrast, herbivores were associated with crop loss incidents during the wet season (November‐April). Our study illustrates how local communities can face distinct livelihood challenges from different species at different times of the year. Such a multi‐species assessment has important implications for the design of conservation interventions aimed at addressing the costs of living with wildlife, and thereby mitigating the underlying conservation conflict. Our spatiotemporal, multi‐species approach is widely applicable to other regions where sustainable and long‐term solutions to conservation conflicts are needed for local communities and biodiversity

Achieving international biodiversity targets: learning from local norms, values and actions regarding migratory waterfowl management in Kazakhstan

1. Migratory species are protected under international legislation; their seasonal movements across international borders may therefore present opportunities for understanding how global conservation policies translate to local-level actions across different socio-ecological contexts. Moreover, local-level management of migratory species can reveal how culture and governance affects progress towards achieving global targets. Here, we investigate potential misalignment in the two-way relationship between global-level conservation policies (i.e. hunting bans and quotas) and local-level norms, values and actions (i.e. legal and illegal hunting) in the context of waterfowl hunting in Northern Kazakhstan as a case-study. 2. N Kazakhstan is globally important for waterfowl and a key staging area for arctic-breeding species. Hunting is managed through licences, quotas and seasonal bans under UN-AEWA intergovernmental agreements. To better understand the local socio-ecological context of waterfowl hunting, we take a mixed-methods approach using socio-ecological surveys, informal discussions, and population modelling of a focal migratory goose species to: (1) investigate motivations for hunting in relation to socio-economic factors; (2) assess knowledge of species’ protection status; and (3) predict the population size of Lesser White-fronted Geese (LWfG; Anser erythropus; IUCN Vulnerable) under different scenarios of survival rates and hunting offtake, to understand how goose population demographics interact with the local socio-ecological context. 3. Model results showed no evidence that waterfowl hunting is motivated by financial gain; social and cultural importance were stronger factors. The majority of hunters are knowledgeable about species’ protection status; however, 11% did not know LWfG are protected, highlighting a key area for increased stakeholder engagement. 4. Simulations of LWfG population growth over a 20-year period showed LWfG are highly vulnerable to hunting pressure even when survival rates are high. This potential impact of hunting highlights the need for effective regulation along the entire flyway; our survey results show that hunters were generally compliant with newly introduced hunting regulations, showing that effective regulation is possible on a local level. Synthesis and applications. Here, we investigate how global conservation policy and local norms interact to affect the management of a threatened migratory species, which is particularly important for the protection and sustainable management of wildlife that crosses international borders where local contexts may differ. Our study highlights that to be effective and sustainable in the long-term, global conservation policies must fully integrate local socio-economic, cultural, governance and environmental contexts, to ensure interventions are equitable across entire species’ ranges. This approach is relevant and adaptable for different contexts involving the conservation of wide-ranging and migratory species, including the 255 migratory waterfowl covered by UN-AEWA (United Nations Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds).Output Status: Forthcoming/Available Onlin

ANGPTL-4 is Associated with Obesity and Lipid Profile in Children and Adolescents

Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL-4) regulates lipidic metabolism and affects energy homeostasis. However, its function in children with obesity remains unknown. We investigated plasma ANGPTL-4 levels in children and its relationship with body mass index (BMI) and different lipidic parameters such as free fatty acids (FFA). Plasma ANGPTL-4 levels were analyzed in two different cohorts. In the first cohort (n = 150, age 3–17 years), which included children with normal weight or obesity, we performed a cross-sectional study. In the second cohort, which included only children with obesity (n = 20, age 5–18 years) followed up for two years after an intervention for weight loss, in which we performed a longitudinal study measuring ANGPTL-4 before and after BMI-loss. In the cross-sectional study, circulating ANGPTL-4 levels were lower in children with obesity than in those with normal weight. Moreover, ANGPTL-4 presented a negative correlation with BMI, waist circumference, weight, insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index (HOMA index), triglycerides, and leptin, and a positive correlation with FFA and vitamin-D. In the longitudinal study, the percent change in plasma ANGPTL-4 was correlated with the percent change in FFA, total-cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. This study reveals a significant association of ANGPTL-4 with pediatric obesity and plasma lipid profileThis research was funded by INSTITUTO DE SALUD CARLOS III cofounded by FEDER, grants number PI18/00998, PI15/01272, PI11/02042, PI16/01301, and PI16/00871, and FUNDACIÓN MUTUA MADRILEÑAS

The role of incentive-based instruments and social equity in conservation conflict interventions

Conflicts between biodiversity conservation and other human activities are multifaceted. Understanding farmer preferences for various conflict mitigation strategies is therefore critical. We developed a novel interactive game around farmer land management decisions across 18 villages in Gabon to examine responses to three elephant conflict mitigation options: use of elephant deterrent methods, flat-rate subsidy, and agglomeration payments rewarding coordinated action for setting land aside for elephants. We found that all three policies significantly reduced participants’ inclinations to engage in lethal control. Use of deterrents and agglomeration payments were also more likely to reduce decisions to kill elephants in situations where levels of social equity were higher. Only the two monetary incentives increased farmers’ predisposition to provide habitats for elephants, suggesting that incentive-based instruments were conducive to pro-conservation behavior; different subsidy levels did not affect responses. Likewise, neither participants’ socioeconomic characteristics nor their real-life experiences of crop damage by elephants affected game decisions. Killing behavior in the games was 64% lower in villages influenced by protected areas than in villages surrounded by logging concessions, highlighting the need to address conservation conflicts beyond protected areas. Our study shows the importance of addressing underlying social conflicts, specifically equity attitudes, prior to, or alongside addressing material losses

PTRF/Cavin-1 and MIF Proteins Are Identified as Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Biomarkers by Label-Free Proteomics

With the completion of the human genome sequence, biomedical sciences have entered in the “omics” era, mainly due to high-throughput genomics techniques and the recent application of mass spectrometry to proteomics analyses. However, there is still a time lag between these technological advances and their application in the clinical setting. Our work is designed to build bridges between high-performance proteomics and clinical routine. Protein extracts were obtained from fresh frozen normal lung and non-small cell lung cancer samples. We applied a phosphopeptide enrichment followed by LC-MS/MS. Subsequent label-free quantification and bioinformatics analyses were performed. We assessed protein patterns on these samples, showing dozens of differential markers between normal and tumor tissue. Gene ontology and interactome analyses identified signaling pathways altered on tumor tissue. We have identified two proteins, PTRF/cavin-1 and MIF, which are differentially expressed between normal lung and non-small cell lung cancer. These potential biomarkers were validated using western blot and immunohistochemistry. The application of discovery-based proteomics analyses in clinical samples allowed us to identify new potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets in non-small cell lung cancer

EuroPineDB: a high-coverage web database for maritime pine transcriptome

Pinus pinaster is an economically and ecologically important species that is becoming a woody gymnosperm model. Its enormous genome size makes whole-genome sequencing approaches are hard to apply. Therefore, the expressed portion of the genome has to be characterised and the results and annotations have to be stored in dedicated databases

Patient preferences and treatment safety for uncomplicated vulvovaginal candidiasis in primary health care

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Vaginitis is a common complaint in primary care. In uncomplicated candidal vaginitis, there are no differences in effectiveness between oral or vaginal treatment. Some studies describe that the preferred treatment is the oral one, but a Cochrane's review points out inconsistencies associated with the report of the preferred way that limit the use of such data. Risk factors associated with recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis still remain controversial.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>This work describes a protocol of a multicentric prospective observational study with one year follow up, to describe the women's reasons and preferences to choose the way of administration (oral vs topical) in the treatment of not complicated candidal vaginitis. The number of women required is 765, they are chosen by consecutive sampling. All of whom are aged 16 and over with vaginal discharge and/or vaginal pruritus, diagnosed with not complicated vulvovaginitis in Primary Care in Madrid.</p> <p>The main outcome variable is the preferences of the patients in treatment choice; secondary outcome variables are time to symptoms relief and adverse reactions and the frequency of recurrent vulvovaginitis and the risk factors. In the statistical analysis, for the main objective will be descriptive for each of the variables, bivariant analysis and multivariate analysis (logistic regression).. The dependent variable being the type of treatment chosen (oral or topical) and the independent, the variables that after bivariant analysis, have been associated to the treatment preference.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Clinical decisions, recommendations, and practice guidelines must not only attend to the best available evidence, but also to the values and preferences of the informed patient.</p

Effectiveness of a strategy that uses educational games to implement clinical practice guidelines among Spanish residents of family and community medicine (e-EDUCAGUIA project):A clinical trial by clusters

This study was funded by the Fondo de Investigaciones Sanitarias FIS Grant Number PI11/0477 ISCIII.-REDISSEC Proyecto RD12/0001/0012 AND FEDER Funding.Background: Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) have been developed with the aim of helping health professionals, patients, and caregivers make decisions about their health care, using the best available evidence. In many cases, incorporation of these recommendations into clinical practice also implies a need for changes in routine clinical practice. Using educational games as a strategy for implementing recommendations among health professionals has been demonstrated to be effective in some studies; however, evidence is still scarce. The primary objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a teaching strategy for the implementation of CPGs using educational games (e-learning EDUCAGUIA) to improve knowledge and skills related to clinical decision-making by residents in family medicine. The primary objective will be evaluated at 1 and 6months after the intervention. The secondary objectives are to identify barriers and facilitators for the use of guidelines by residents of family medicine and to describe the educational strategies used by Spanish teaching units of family and community medicine to encourage implementation of CPGs. Methods/design: We propose a multicenter clinical trial with randomized allocation by clusters of family and community medicine teaching units in Spain. The sample size will be 394 residents (197 in each group), with the teaching units as the randomization unit and the residents comprising the analysis unit. For the intervention, both groups will receive an initial 1-h session on clinical practice guideline use and the usual dissemination strategy by e-mail. The intervention group (e-learning EDUCAGUIA) strategy will consist of educational games with hypothetical clinical scenarios in a virtual environment. The primary outcome will be the score obtained by the residents on evaluation questionnaires for each clinical practice guideline. Other included variables will be the sociodemographic and training variables of the residents and the teaching unit characteristics. The statistical analysis will consist of a descriptive analysis of variables and a baseline comparison of both groups. For the primary outcome analysis, an average score comparison of hypothetical scenario questionnaires between the EDUCAGUIA intervention group and the control group will be performed at 1 and 6months post-intervention, using 95% confidence intervals. A linear multilevel regression will be used to adjust the model. Discussion: The identification of effective teaching strategies will facilitate the incorporation of available knowledge into clinical practice that could eventually improve patient outcomes. The inclusion of information technologies as teaching tools permits greater learning autonomy and allows deeper instructor participation in the monitoring and supervision of residents. The long-term impact of this strategy is unknown; however, because it is aimed at professionals undergoing training and it addresses prevalent health problems, a small effect can be of great relevance. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02210442.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe