Seasonal cyclicity of associations, calving and distribution of adult female bottlenose dolphins: Management implications

Conservation management typically focuses on protecting wildlife habitat that is linked to important behaviours, such as resting, breeding or caring for young. Understanding the timing of these behaviours, and where they take place, is critical to determining appropriate management measures to protect key life processes of wildlife populations

In Reply: neurosurgery and coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic: doing our part

To the Editor: We appreciated the Letter, “Letter: Neurosurgery and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Epidemic: Doing Our Part” by Pesce et al, published in April 2020 in Neurosurgery. We are grateful to the authors of the Letter for their clear analysis of some neurosurgical procedures in the COVID-19 era. Everyone in the neurosurgical community and in the whole medical community is doing their own part to face this terrible pandemic. Specifically, we would like to present our experience with patients needing a lumbar function or a neuroimaging. We already described our strategy for all emergency patients in an article published in Neurosurgery in April 2020 entitled “In Reply: Rongeurs, Neurosurgeons, and COVID-19: How Do We Protect Health Care Personnel During Neurosurgical Operations in the Midst of Aerosol-Generation From High-Speed Drills?

Assessment of the structures contribution (crystalline and mesophases) and mechanical properties of polycaprolactone/pluronic blends

Films of biodegradable blends of polycaprolactone (PCL) and Pluronics F68 and F127 were manufactured by an industrial thermo-mechanical process to be applied as potential delivery systems. The effects of Pluronics on the structure (mesophase organization), and thermal and mechanical properties of polycaprolactone were investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), polarized optical microscopy (POM) and tensile mechanical tests. The addition of Pluronics affected the crystallization process by changing the relative amounts of crystalline, amorphous, and meso- (condis + plastic) phases. The melting transition and XRD profiles were deconvoluted to assess the individual contribution of the different crystal morphologies. Furthermore, it was found that the mechanical properties of the blends depended on the ratio and type of Pluronic. Thus, Pluronic F127 showed a larger mesophase content than its F68 counterpart with PCL and blends with enhanced ductilityFunding for open access charge was provided by Universidad de Huelva / CBUA. The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support

Light-Modulated Rheological Properties in Green Innovative Formulations

The addition of azorubine to a viscoelastic aqueous dispersion of sodium oleate (NaOL, 0.43 M, 13% w/w) and KCl (up to 4% w/w) leads to a green gel-like system whose rheological behavior can be efficiently and reversibly triggered from remote by using UV light. Rheology, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) measurements and phase behavior studies indicate that the original texture of the NaOL dispersion is significantly hardened upon UV irradiation for 8 hours in the presence of azorubine, showing a seven hundred-fold increase in viscosity. The UV treatment brings about the trans to cis isomerization of azorubine, which modifies the structure of the NaOL wormlike micellar system, leading to a more entangled, close-textured network. The cooperative effect of KCl on the fluid viscosity is found to be concentration-dependent. The system slowly reverts to its original rheological behaviour after standing for about 1 day. These results are relevant for the development of stimuli-responsive innovative systems based on biocompatible, non expensive and commercially available materials that can be used in a wide range of applications, such as in drug delivery or enhanced oil recovery, where a quick change in the physico-chemical features of the system is required but difficult to be performed

Sex-specific patterns in demography of bottlenose dolphins in coastal and estuarine waters

Inherent difficulties in determining the sex of free-ranging, sexually monomorphic species (where both sexes look the same) often prevents a sex-specific approach to their study. However, accounting for sex-differences in population parameters can have important conservation and management implications, as one sex may be more susceptible to threats than the other