Engaged Black Bear Digital Badging Initiative

To help meet the vision of student-­‐centered, learning pathways the University of Maine Provost sought to create a digital badging system as a means of identifying and validating the rich array of people\u27s skills, knowledge, accomplishments, and competencies. This program ended in Spring 2020. See attached supplemental document

Revealing the diversity of extracellular vesicles using high-dimensional flow cytometry analyses

Extracellular vesicles (EV) are small membrane vesicles produced by cells upon activation and apoptosis. EVs are heterogeneous according to their origin, mode of release, membrane composition, organelle and biochemical content, and other factors. Whereas it is apparent that EVs are implicated in intercellular communication, they can also be used as biomarkers. Continuous improvements in pre-analytical parameters and flow cytometry permit more efficient assessment of EVs; however, methods to more objectively distinguish EVs from cells and background, and to interpret multiple single-EV parameters are lacking. We used spanning-tree progression analysis of density-normalized events (SPADE) as a computational approach for the organization of EV subpopulations released by platelets and erythrocytes. SPADE distinguished EVs, and logically organized EVs detected by high-sensitivity flow cytofluorometry based on size estimation, granularity, mitochondrial content, and phosphatidylserine and protein receptor surface expression. Plasma EVs were organized by hierarchy, permitting appreciation of their heterogeneity. Furthermore, SPADE was used to analyze EVs present in the synovial fluid of patients with inflammatory arthritis. Its algorithm efficiently revealed subtypes of arthritic patients based on EV heterogeneity patterns. Our study reveals that computational algorithms are useful for the analysis of high-dimensional single EV data, thereby facilitating comprehension of EV functions and biomarker development

The biogeochemical impact of glacial meltwater from Southwest Greenland

Biogeochemical cycling in high-latitude regions has a disproportionate impact on global nutrient budgets. Here, we introduce a holistic, multi-disciplinary framework for elucidating the influence of glacial meltwaters, shelf currents, and biological production on biogeochemical cycling in high-latitude continental margins, with a focus on the silica cycle. Our findings highlight the impact of significant glacial discharge on nutrient supply to shelf and slope waters, as well as surface and benthic production in these regions, over a range of timescales from days to thousands of years. Whilst biological uptake in fjords and strong diatom activity in coastal waters maintains low dissolved silicon concentrations in surface waters, we find important but spatially heterogeneous additions of particulates into the system, which are transported rapidly away from the shore. We expect the glacially-derived particles – together with biogenic silica tests – to be cycled rapidly through shallow sediments, resulting in a strong benthic flux of dissolved silicon. Entrainment of this benthic silicon into boundary currents may supply an important source of this key nutrient into the Labrador Sea, and is also likely to recirculate back into the deep fjords inshore. This study illustrates how geochemical and oceanographic analyses can be used together to probe further into modern nutrient cycling in this region, as well as the palaeoclimatological approaches to investigating changes in glacial meltwater discharge through time, especially during periods of rapid climatic change in the Late Quaternary

Altimetry for the future: Building on 25 years of progress

In 2018 we celebrated 25 years of development of radar altimetry, and the progress achieved by this methodology in the fields of global and coastal oceanography, hydrology, geodesy and cryospheric sciences. Many symbolic major events have celebrated these developments, e.g., in Venice, Italy, the 15th (2006) and 20th (2012) years of progress and more recently, in 2018, in Ponta Delgada, Portugal, 25 Years of Progress in Radar Altimetry. On this latter occasion it was decided to collect contributions of scientists, engineers and managers involved in the worldwide altimetry community to depict the state of altimetry and propose recommendations for the altimetry of the future. This paper summarizes contributions and recommendations that were collected and provides guidance for future mission design, research activities, and sustainable operational radar altimetry data exploitation. Recommendations provided are fundamental for optimizing further scientific and operational advances of oceanographic observations by altimetry, including requirements for spatial and temporal resolution of altimetric measurements, their accuracy and continuity. There are also new challenges and new openings mentioned in the paper that are particularly crucial for observations at higher latitudes, for coastal oceanography, for cryospheric studies and for hydrology. The paper starts with a general introduction followed by a section on Earth System Science including Ocean Dynamics, Sea Level, the Coastal Ocean, Hydrology, the Cryosphere and Polar Oceans and the ‘‘Green” Ocean, extending the frontier from biogeochemistry to marine ecology. Applications are described in a subsequent section, which covers Operational Oceanography, Weather, Hurricane Wave and Wind Forecasting, Climate projection. Instruments’ development and satellite missions’ evolutions are described in a fourth section. A fifth section covers the key observations that altimeters provide and their potential complements, from other Earth observation measurements to in situ data. Section 6 identifies the data and methods and provides some accuracy and resolution requirements for the wet tropospheric correction, the orbit and other geodetic requirements, the Mean Sea Surface, Geoid and Mean Dynamic Topography, Calibration and Validation, data accuracy, data access and handling (including the DUACS system). Section 7 brings a transversal view on scales, integration, artificial intelligence, and capacity building (education and training). Section 8 reviews the programmatic issues followed by a conclusion

AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds

Functional traits offer a rich quantitative framework for developing and testing theories in evolutionary biology, ecology and ecosystem science. However, the potential of functional traits to drive theoretical advances and refine models of global change can only be fully realised when species‐level information is complete. Here we present the AVONET dataset containing comprehensive functional trait data for all birds, including six ecological variables, 11 continuous morphological traits, and information on range size and location. Raw morphological measurements are presented from 90,020 individuals of 11,009 extant bird species sampled from 181 countries. These data are also summarised as species averages in three taxonomic formats, allowing integration with a global phylogeny, geographical range maps, IUCN Red List data and the eBird citizen science database. The AVONET dataset provides the most detailed picture of continuous trait variation for any major radiation of organisms, offering a global template for testing hypotheses and exploring the evolutionary origins, structure and functioning of biodiversity

Altimetry for the future: building on 25 years of progress

In 2018 we celebrated 25 years of development of radar altimetry, and the progress achieved by this methodology in the fields of global and coastal oceanography, hydrology, geodesy and cryospheric sciences. Many symbolic major events have celebrated these developments, e.g., in Venice, Italy, the 15th (2006) and 20th (2012) years of progress and more recently, in 2018, in Ponta Delgada, Portugal, 25 Years of Progress in Radar Altimetry. On this latter occasion it was decided to collect contributions of scientists, engineers and managers involved in the worldwide altimetry community to depict the state of altimetry and propose recommendations for the altimetry of the future. This paper summarizes contributions and recommendations that were collected and provides guidance for future mission design, research activities, and sustainable operational radar altimetry data exploitation. Recommendations provided are fundamental for optimizing further scientific and operational advances of oceanographic observations by altimetry, including requirements for spatial and temporal resolution of altimetric measurements, their accuracy and continuity. There are also new challenges and new openings mentioned in the paper that are particularly crucial for observations at higher latitudes, for coastal oceanography, for cryospheric studies and for hydrology. The paper starts with a general introduction followed by a section on Earth System Science including Ocean Dynamics, Sea Level, the Coastal Ocean, Hydrology, the Cryosphere and Polar Oceans and the “Green” Ocean, extending the frontier from biogeochemistry to marine ecology. Applications are described in a subsequent section, which covers Operational Oceanography, Weather, Hurricane Wave and Wind Forecasting, Climate projection. Instruments’ development and satellite missions’ evolutions are described in a fourth section. A fifth section covers the key observations that altimeters provide and their potential complements, from other Earth observation measurements to in situ data. Section 6 identifies the data and methods and provides some accuracy and resolution requirements for the wet tropospheric correction, the orbit and other geodetic requirements, the Mean Sea Surface, Geoid and Mean Dynamic Topography, Calibration and Validation, data accuracy, data access and handling (including the DUACS system). Section 7 brings a transversal view on scales, integration, artificial intelligence, and capacity building (education and training). Section 8 reviews the programmatic issues followed by a conclusion

Time to Switch to Second-line Antiretroviral Therapy in Children With Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Europe and Thailand.

Background: Data on durability of first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART) in children with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are limited. We assessed time to switch to second-line therapy in 16 European countries and Thailand. Methods: Children aged <18 years initiating combination ART (≥2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors [NRTIs] plus nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor [NNRTI] or boosted protease inhibitor [PI]) were included. Switch to second-line was defined as (i) change across drug class (PI to NNRTI or vice versa) or within PI class plus change of ≥1 NRTI; (ii) change from single to dual PI; or (iii) addition of a new drug class. Cumulative incidence of switch was calculated with death and loss to follow-up as competing risks. Results: Of 3668 children included, median age at ART initiation was 6.1 (interquartile range (IQR), 1.7-10.5) years. Initial regimens were 32% PI based, 34% nevirapine (NVP) based, and 33% efavirenz based. Median duration of follow-up was 5.4 (IQR, 2.9-8.3) years. Cumulative incidence of switch at 5 years was 21% (95% confidence interval, 20%-23%), with significant regional variations. Median time to switch was 30 (IQR, 16-58) months; two-thirds of switches were related to treatment failure. In multivariable analysis, older age, severe immunosuppression and higher viral load (VL) at ART start, and NVP-based initial regimens were associated with increased risk of switch. Conclusions: One in 5 children switched to a second-line regimen by 5 years of ART, with two-thirds failure related. Advanced HIV, older age, and NVP-based regimens were associated with increased risk of switch

Comparaison de radiotraceurs marqués au gallium-68 et au fluor-18 pour l’imagerie TEP de modèles précliniques de neuroblastome, de glioblastome ou de cancer bronchopulmonaire.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET), a modality of functional medical imaging, has been developing for about 15 years. In oncology, 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET has become a main tool for cancer diagnosis. However, FDG cannot detect and monitor all types of cancer. Thus research is continuing, exploring new applications for other documented tracers and developing more specific and targeted tracers than analogues of metabolic substrates. The first study of this doctorate was done with 68Ga-DOTATOC PET in preclinical model of neuroblastoma (NB), which share some biologic properties with neuroendocrine tumours, frequently expressing somatostatin receptors subtype 2 (SSTR2). Our aim was to compare FDG and 68Ga-DOTATOC PET in 3 different mouse models of human NB that express SSTR2 at different levels. The second study compared FDG and 68Ga-RGD, a ligand of integrins, in a mouse model of human glioblastoma (GB) that overexpresses αvβ3 integrin. Both tracers have been evaluated in monitoring 4 groups of animals untreated or treated with an anti-angiogenic agent and/or chemotherapy. The third study compared the 18F-RGD-K5 and 68Ga-RGD in a mouse model bearing human GB and pulmonary carcinoma, which has a low expression of αvβ3 integrin. The potential of those tracers for monitoring an anti-angiogenic treatment was subsequently studied. Both 68Ga-DOTATOC and FDG allowed visualizing the different models of NB. There was a correlation between tumour uptake of FDG and of 68Ga-DOTATOC and, ex vivo, with SSTR2 and Ki-67. 68Ga-RGD, unlike FDG, discriminated responders after 6 days of treatment. Results with 18F-RGD-K5 and 68Ga-RGD were concordant, but 18F-RGD-K5 was more efficient than 68Ga-RGD for visualization and treatment monitoring GB.La Tomographie par Emission de Positons (TEP) est une modalité d’imagerie médicale en pleine expansion depuis une quinzaine d’années. En oncologie, la TEP au 18F-fluorodésoxyglucose (FDG) est devenue un outil essentiel pour la prise en charge des patients souffrant de cancer. Cependant il ne permet pas la détection et le suivi de tous les cancers, de nombreux radiotraceurs sont donc développés, plus ciblés et plus spécifiques que les analogues des substrats métaboliques. Durant ce travail de doctorat, la première étude TEP a été réalisée avec du 68Ga-DOTATOC dans un modèle préclinique de neuroblastome (NB) humain. Cette tumeur, qui présente des analogies avec les tumeurs neuroendocrines, exprime fréquemment des récepteurs de type 2 de la somatostatine (SSTR2). Nous avons comparé, le FDG au 68Ga-DOTATOC dans 3 modèles murins de différents NB humains, exprimant les SSTR2 avec une densité différente. La deuxième étude a comparé et évalué le FDG et un 68Ga-RGD, ligand des intégrines, sur des modèles murins de glioblastome (GB) humain surexpriment l’intégrine αvβ3. L’évaluation s’est faite dans le suivi de 4 groupes d’animaux traités ou non avec un anti-angiogénique et/ou une chimiothérapie. La troisième étude a comparé et évalué le 68Ga-RGD et le 18F-RGD-K5 dans un modèle murin, associant GB humain et carcinome pulmonaire humain, lors du suivi d’un traitement anti-angiogénique. Le 68Ga-DOTATOC et le FDG ont tous deux permis de visualiser les 3 différents modèles de NB. La fixation du FDG s’est avérée corrélée à celle du 68Ga-DOTATOC et, ex vivo, à l’expression des SSTR2 et du Ki-67. Le 68Ga-RGD, contrairement au FDG, a permis de discriminer les groupes répondeurs après 6 jours de traitement. Bien que les résultats soient concordants entre le 68Ga-RGD et le 18F-RGD-K5, celui-ci a permis une meilleure visualisation et un meilleur suivi sous traitement des GB