VisIVOWeb: A WWW Environment for Large-Scale Astrophysical Visualization

This article presents a newly developed Web portal called VisIVOWeb that aims to provide the astrophysical community with powerful visualization tools for large-scale data sets in the context of Web 2.0. VisIVOWeb can effectively handle modern numerical simulations and real-world observations. Our open-source software is based on established visualization toolkits offering high-quality rendering algorithms. The underlying data management is discussed with the supported visualization interfaces and movie-making functionality. We introduce VisIVOWeb Network, a robust network of customized Web portals for visual discovery, and VisIVOWeb Connect, a lightweight and efficient solution for seamlessly connecting to existing astrophysical archives. A significant effort has been devoted for ensuring interoperability with existing tools by adhering to IVOA standards. We conclude with a summary of our work and a discussion on future developments

Changing patterns of conflict between humans, carnivores and crop-raiding prey as large carnivores recolonize human-dominated landscapes

Large carnivores are making remarkable comebacks in Europe, but how this affects human-wildlife conflict remains unclear. Rebounding carnivore populations lead to increasing livestock depredation, which in turn leads to greater economic losses for farmers. However, returning carnivores could also influence the behavior of wild ungulates, which are themselves responsible for major crop damage and associated economic losses. Here, we exploit the natural experiment of a rebounding wolf population in the Italian Apennines to study how this affected both types of human-wildlife conflic. We used large datasets of wolf occurrences (n = 351), livestock depredation events (n = 165), and crop damage events by wild boar (n = 3442) to independently model the determinants of livestock depredation and crop damage distribution in relation to wolf habitat suitability over a ten-year period of increasing wolf numbers. These analyses yielded two major insights. First, livestock depredations were mainly related to insufficient prevention measures (e.g. lacking fencing) rather than landscape context, providing a clear pathway to conflict mitigation. Second, crop damage decreased in areas of higher wolf habitat suitability and became more likely in areas of lower wolf habitat suitability, closer to settlements. This suggests increasing predation pressure forces wild boars to avoid the most suitable wolf habitat, leading to a redistribution of crop damage in the landscape. More generally, our study highlights complex human-wildlife interactions as large carnivores recover in human-dominated landscapes, suggesting that multiple, cooccurring conflicts need to be assessed jointly and adaptively in order to foster coexistence between humans and wildlife

Molecular phylogeny of two lineages of Leuciscinae cyprinids (Telestes and Scardinius) from the peri-Mediterranean area based on cytochrome b data.

We examined phylogenetic relationships in two lineages of Leuciscinae cyprinid fishes based on the sequence data of the complete mitochondrial DNA region coding for the cytochrome b gene (1140 bp). Telestes includes obligate riverine, moderately cold wateradapted species whereas Scardinius comprises warm-adapted species living in lowland lakes and still waters of rivers and streams. We also analysed selected representatives of Leuciscus and Phoxinellus because the taxonomic status of some species belonging to these genera is dubious and they could be placed in the genus Telestes. The study includes 18 species, 43 populations, and 111 individuals from 9 of the 14 peri-Mediterranean ichthyogeographic districts. Clades recovered from the phylogenetic analyses do not support previous taxonomic assumptions based on morphology. Telestes, Leuciscus, and Phoxinellus do not form monophyletic assemblages; phylogenetic analyses suggest that L. polylepis, L. turskyi, P. croaticus, and P. metohiensis should be included in Telestes. Similarly, populations of Scardinius erythrophthalmus do not cluster together and the endangered S. scardafa, endemic to central Italy and surviving in a single locality, is nested within them. The radiations of Telestes and Scardinius occurred in different time periods. A major diversification of Telestes is consistent with a sea dispersal during the freshwater Messinian ‘‘Lago Mare’’ phase of the Mediterranean Sea. Cladogenetic events within Scardinius are likely related to the extension and confluence of river drainages in lowlands following multiple lowering of the sea level during the Quaternary glaciations

On the trail of medieval wolves: ancient DNA, CT-based analyses and palaeopathology of a 1000-year-old wolf cranium from the Po Valley (northern Italy)

The Middle Ages represented a crucial period for the evolutionary history of wolves (Canis lupus), marked by both significant ecosystem changes, especially through the degradation of wooded landscapes and heavy persecution, that drove this species to a dramatic demographic decline. In Europe, informative and well-documented wolf remains from the Medieval Ages are exceptionally rare and are mostly represented by teeth and postcranial elements. In this study, we describe a well-preserved wolf cranium dated to ca. 967–1157 AD from the Po Valley (northern Italy). The specimen was analysed through a multidisciplinary approach including CT-based, ancient DNA, and palaeopathological analyses. Morphological and genetic data supported the assignment of this sample to Canis lupus species. CT-based analyses indicated a typical wolf-like morphology falling into the extant variability of the medium-sized subspecies C. lupus italicus, whereas palaeopathological analyses indicated a severe periodontitis. Phylogenetic analyses showed that the Po valley wolf had a unique and never described mtDNA control region haplotype, testifying variability in the ancient Italian wolf, which has now been lost. This study provides the first comprehensive description of a wolf from the Middle Ages, adding useful information for a deeper knowledge about population dynamics, variability, and diseases of this species

Multilocus Detection of Wolf x Dog Hybridization in Italy, and Guidelines for Marker Selection

Hybridization and introgression can impact the evolution of natural populations. Several wild canid species hybridize in nature, sometimes originating new taxa. However, hybridization with free-ranging dogs is threatening the genetic integrity of grey wolf populations (Canis lupus), or even the survival of endangered species (e.g., the Ethiopian wolf C. simensis). Efficient molecular tools to assess hybridization rates are essential in wolf conservation strategies. We evaluated the power of biparental and uniparental markers (39 autosomal and 4 Y-linked microsatellites, a melanistic deletion at the \u3b2-defensin CBD103 gene, the hypervariable domain of the mtDNA control-region) to identify the multilocus admixture patterns in wolf x dog hybrids. We used empirical data from 2 hybrid groups with different histories: 30 presumptive natural hybrids from Italy and 73 Czechoslovakian wolfdogs of known hybrid origin, as well as simulated data. We assessed the efficiency of various marker combinations and reference samples in admixture analyses using 69 dogs of different breeds and 99 wolves from Italy, Balkans and Carpathian Mountains. Results confirmed the occurrence of hybrids in Italy, some of them showing anomalous phenotypic traits and exogenous mtDNA or Y-chromosome introgression. Hybridization was mostly attributable to village dogs and not strictly patrilineal. The melanistic \u3b2-defensin deletion was found only in Italian dogs and in putative hybrids. The 24 most divergent microsatellites (largest wolf-dog FST values) were equally or more informative than the entire panel of 39 loci. A smaller panel of 12 microsatellites increased risks to identify false admixed individuals. The frequency of F1 and F2 was lower than backcrosses or introgressed individuals, suggesting hybridization already occurred some generations in the past, during early phases of wolf expansion from their historical core areas. Empirical and simulated data indicated the identification of the past generation backcrosses is always uncertain, and a larger number of ancestry-informative markers is needed

GSK-3\u3b2-induced Tau pathology drives hippocampal neuronal cell death in Huntington's disease: involvement of astrocyte-neuron interactions

Glycogen synthase kinase-3\u3b2 (GSK-3\u3b2) has emerged as a critical factor in several pathways involved in hippocampal neuronal maintenance and function. In Huntington's disease (HD), there are early hippocampal deficits both in patients and transgenic mouse models, which prompted us to investigate whether disease-specific changes in GSK-3\u3b2 expression may underlie these abnormalities. Thirty-three postmortem hippocampal samples from HD patients (neuropathological grades 2-4) and age- and sex-matched normal control cases were analyzed using real-time quantitative reverse transcription PCRs (qPCRs) and immunohistochemistry. In vitro and in vivo studies looking at hippocampal pathology and GSK-3\u3b2 were also undertaken in transgenic R6/2 and wild-type mice. We identified a disease and stage-dependent upregulation of GSK-3\u3b2 mRNA and protein levels in the HD hippocampus, with the active isoform pGSK-3\u3b2-Tyr(216) being strongly expressed in dentate gyrus (DG) neurons and astrocytes at a time when phosphorylation of Tau at the AT8 epitope was also present in these same neurons. This upregulation of pGSK-3\u3b2-Tyr(216) was also found in the R6/2 hippocampus in vivo and linked to the increased vulnerability of primary hippocampal neurons in vitro. In addition, the increased expression of GSK-3\u3b2 in the astrocytes of R6/2 mice appeared to be the main driver of Tau phosphorylation and caspase3 activation-induced neuronal death, at least in part via an exacerbated production of major proinflammatory mediators. This stage-dependent overactivation of GSK-3\u3b2 in HD-affected hippocampal neurons and astrocytes therefore points to GSK-3\u3b2 as being a critical factor in the pathological development of this condition. As such, therapeutic targeting of this pathway may help ameliorate neuronal dysfunction in HD

Sistema de información de tráfico vehicular en rutas

La presente publicación trata de un proyecto ya en curso que consiste en desarrollar el hardware y software de un sistema de información para la adquisición y análisis de datos de tráfico vehicular en rutas pavimentadas. El mismo se compone de varios subsistemas, entre ellos, el de adquisición de datos "in situ", el de transmisión inalámbrica y el de almacenamiento y procesamiento. Mediante sensores instalados en ruta, se toman datos sobre los vehículos que atraviesan una determinada arteria (sin interrupción del flujo vehicular), se analizan y procesan los datos y se los envía en forma remota a una central para la elaboración de informes estadísticos. Este tipo de tecnología será de gran importancia ya que permitirá caracterizar el flujo vehicular, permitiendo administrar y planificar el uso, mantenimiento y construcción de nuevas y mejores rutas, además de aportar herramientas para aumentar la seguridad en las mismas.Sociedad Argentina de Informática e Investigación Operativ

Efavirenz versus boosted atazanavir-containing regimens and immunologic, virologic, and clinical outcomes: A prospective study of HIV-positive individuals

OBJECTIVE: To compare regimens consisting of either ritonavir-boosted atazanavir or efavirenz and a nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) backbone with respect to clinical, immunologic, and virologic outcomes. DESIGN: Prospective studies of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals in Europe and the United States included in the HIV-CAUSAL Collaboration. METHODS: HIV-positive, antiretroviral therapy-naive, and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)-free individuals were followed from the time they started an atazanavir or efavirenz regimen. We estimated an analog of the "intention-to-treat" effect for efavirenz versus atazanavir regimens on clinical, immunologic, and virologic outcomes with adjustment via inverse probability weighting for time-varying covariates. RESULTS: A total of 4301 individuals started an atazanavir regimen (83 deaths, 157 AIDS-defining illnesses or deaths) and 18,786 individuals started an efavirenz regimen (389 deaths, 825 AIDS-defining illnesses or deaths). During a median follow-up of 31 months, the hazard ratios (95% confidence intervals) were 0.98 (0.77, 1.24) for death and 1.09 (0.91, 1.30) for AIDS-defining illness or death comparing efavirenz with atazanavir regimens. The 5-year survival difference was 0.1% (95% confidence interval: -0.7%, 0.8%) and the AIDS-free survival difference was -0.3% (-1.2%, 0.6%). After 12 months, the mean change in CD4 cell count was 20.8 (95% confidence interval: 13.9, 27.8) cells/mm lower and the risk of virologic failure was 20% (14%, 26%) lower in the efavirenz regimens. CONCLUSION: Our estimates are consistent with a smaller 12-month increase in CD4 cell count, and a smaller risk of virologic failure at 12 months for efavirenz compared with atazanavir regimens. No overall differences could be detected with respect to 5-year survival or AIDS-free survival