Combination of herbivore removal and nitrogen deposition increases upland carbon storage

© 2015 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Acknowledgements We thank Ruth Mitchell, Alison Hester, Bob Mardon, Eoghain Maclean, David Welch, National Trust for Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and the Woodland Trust for helping find appropriate exclosures and granting access permission. We thank Nick Littlewood and Antonio Lopez Nogueira for their assistance in the field and processing samples in the lab and Ron Smith and Tony Dore for providing N deposition data. SWS was funded by a BBSRC studentship.Non peer reviewedPublisher PD

Scotland Registry for Ankylosing Spondylitis (SIRAS) – Protocol

Funding SIRAS was funded by unrestricted grants from Pfizer and AbbVie. The project was reviewed by both companies, during the award process, for Scientific merit, to ensure that the design did not compromise patient safety, and to assess the global regulatory implications and any impact on regulatory strategy.Publisher PD

Beta Samati: discovery and excavation of an Aksumite town

The Empire of Aksum was one of Africa's most influential ancient civilisations. Traditionally, most archaeological fieldwork has focused on the capital city of Aksum, but recent research at the site of Beta Samati has investigated a contemporaneous trade and religious centre located between Aksum and the Red Sea. The authors outline the discovery of the site and present important finds from the initial excavations, including an early basilica, inscriptions and a gold intaglio ring. From daily life and ritual praxis to international trade, this work illuminates the role of Beta Samati as an administrative centre and its significance within the wider Aksumite world

hUBC9 associates with MEKK1 and type I TNF-α receptor and stimulates NFκB activity

AbstracthUBC9, an E2 ubiquitin conjugating enzyme, was identified by yeast two-hybrid screening and coprecipitation studies to interact with MEKK1 and the type I TNF-α receptor, respectively. Because both of these proteins regulate NFκB activity, the role of hUBC9 in modulating NFκB activity was investigated. Overexpression of hUBC9 in HeLa cells stimulated the activity of NFκB as determined by NFκB reporter and IL-6 secretion assays. hUBC9 also synergized with MEKK1 to activate NFκB reporter activity. Thus, hUBC9 modulates NFκB activity which, at least in part, can be attributed to its interaction with MEKK1 and the type I TNF-α receptor

Incentive-based approaches to sustainable fisheries

The failures of traditional target-species management have led many to propose an ecosystem approach to fisheries to promote sustainability. The ecosystem approach is necessary, especially to account for fishery-ecosystem interactions, but by itself is not sufficient to address two important factors contributing to unsustainable fisheries — inappropriate incentives bearing on fishers, and the ineffective governance that frequently exists in commercial, developed fisheries managed primarily by total harvest limits and input-controls. We contend that much greater emphasis must be placed on fisher motivation when managing fisheries. Using evidence from more than a dozen ‘natural experiments’ in commercial fisheries, we argue that incentive-based approaches that better specify community, individual harvest, or territorial rights and also price ecosystem services — coupled with public research, monitoring and effective oversight — promote sustainable fisheries.incentives, sustainability, rights, fisheries management

Incentive-based approaches to sustainable fisheries (now replaced by EEN0508)

Using examples from more than a dozen fisheries, we highlight the failures of ‘command control’ management and show that approaches that empower fishers with the incentives and the mandate to be co-custodians of the marine environment can promote sustainability. Evidence is provided that where harvesters share well-defined management responsibilities over fish, and experience both the pain of overexploitation and the gains from conservation, they are much more likely to protect fish stocks and habitat. The key insight is that to maintain marine ecosystems for present and future generations, fishing incentives must be compatible with long-term goals of sustainability.incentives, sustainability, rights, fisheries management