Identification of sources and infiltration regimes of nitrate in the semi-arid Kalahari: Regional differences and implications for groundwater management

The Kalahari region of southern Africa offers much potential for nitrogen input into its groundwater. High nitrate concentrations in Kalahari groundwater are therefore quite common and are caused by both anthropogenic and natural sources. Forecasting groundwater nitrate concentrations remains challenging. Source identification of nitrate contamination in groundwater is an important first step for groundwater management and quality prediction, and is aided by isotope analysisof nitrate in the water. Comparative data from 3 groundwater study sites in the Kalahari of Botswana and Namibia with widely different characteristics are presented. Two of the sites (Ghanzi and Gobabis) have shallow water tables in fractured quartzite. These aquifers were affected by pollution from cattle wastes (manure) and septic tank outflows resulting in groundwater nitrate levels exceeding 1 000 mg NO3/. and in ƒÂ15N values of between +7 and +20 ñ AIR. Short-term increases of groundwater nitrate concentrations were triggered by exceptional rainfall events occurring every 10-20 years. At the third site (Serowe in Botswana) there is similar land use and land cover, yet the aquifers are deeper, groundwater dates to Late-Pleistocene age and borehole levels do not show a response to present-day high-rainfall episodes. Nitrate levels up to 219 mg/. are found, but lower 15N content (ƒÂ15N of +3 to +8 ñ) indicates a natural origin of the nitrate. In this area pollution nitrate is sufficiently delayed in the vadose zone, reaching the saturated zone much later. The data from all 3 sites suggest that nitrogen management options can only be evaluated once an understanding of sources, processes and flowpatterns has been established

Metacognición en la formación inicial de los educadores

Actualmente toda la comunidad educativa acepta que la metacognición es una de las bases para generar en los estudiantes habilidades de pensamiento, autorregulación frente al aprendizaje, transferencia de capacidades y, sobre todo, potenciar en ellos el ser personas preparadas para el aprendizaje durante toda la vida (Hinton, 2005). Es decir, se podría sustentar que desarrollar la metacognición en las personas es un pilar fundamental para prepararlos para el mundo del futuro. Desde esta reflexión aparecen los cuestionamientos al respecto, entonces ¿por qué en Chile aún no se ha considerado su desarrollo de  orma sistemática y formal en los estudiantes, especialmente en aquellos que serán los responsables de generar estas habilidades en los niños del mañana, como son los profesores. Por otra parte, de acuerdo a la nueva Ley General de Educación, ¿se planteará la metacognición como una necesaria herramienta de trabajo?..

Cyanogenic compounds from mesocarp and epicarp flours of passion fruit (passiflora edulis flavicarpa).

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Cetaceans of the Saya de Malha bank region, Indian Ocean: A candidate Important Marine Mammal Area

This is the final version. Available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record. Data availability: Data will be made available on requestThe banks of Saya de Malha and the surrounding Mascarene Plateau in the Indian Ocean are among the least studied shallow sea water regions in the world. The steep sloping bathymetry of this region is thought to drive high levels of primary productivity and support a diverse range of marine species. Until now, no surveys for cetaceans have been conducted in the waters surrounding Saya de Malha, and so the diversity of cetaceans is unknown. Opportunistic visual and acoustic surveys for cetaceans were conducted onboard a platform of opportunity, the MY Arctic Sunrise, which was involved in a wider project to document the marine life in the region. Survey effort was conducted over 7,700 km, with twelve species of cetacean encountered, including Bryde's, sperm, beaked and killer whales, along with spinner, striped, pantropical spotted and bottlenose dolphins. A match of a sperm whale coda vocalisation to another, well-studied population off the coast of Mauritius suggests possible connectivity between these regions although further data would be required to confirm this. The banks of Saya de Malha appear to support a diverse range of cetacean species and further systematic surveys are required to increase our understanding of how different species utilise the banks. We provide whistle contours from visually confirmed acoustic detections to contribute towards building a region-specific whistle classifier. Given the diversity of species detected in the region, we suggest that the Saya de Malha bank area be designated, either as an Important Marine Mammal Area or as a marine protected area.Greenpeace Internationa

Neural traces of stress: cortisol related sustained enhancement of amygdala-hippocampal functional connectivity

Stressful experiences modulate neuro-circuitry function, and the temporal trajectory of these alterations, elapsing from early disturbances to late recovery, heavily influences resilience and vulnerability to stress. Such effects of stress may depend on processes that are engaged during resting-state, through active recollection of past experiences and anticipation of future events, all known to involve the default mode network (DMN). By inducing social stress and acquiring resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) before stress, immediately following it, and 2 h later, we expanded the time-window for examining the trajectory of the stress response. Throughout the study repeated cortisol samplings and self-reports of stress levels were obtained from 51 healthy young males. Post-stress alterations were investigated by whole brain resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of two central hubs of the DMN: the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and hippocampus. Results indicate a ’recovery’ pattern of DMN connectivity, in which all alterations, ascribed to the intervening stress, returned to pre-stress levels. The only exception to this pattern was a stress-induced rise in amygdala-hippocampal connectivity, which was sustained for as long as 2 h following stress induction. Furthermore, this sustained enhancement of limbic connectivity was inversely correlated to individual stress-induced cortisol responsiveness (AUCi) and characterized only the group lacking such increased cortisol (i.e., non-responders). Our observations provide evidence of a prolonged post-stress response profile, characterized by both the comprehensive balance of most DMN functional connections and the distinct time and cortisol dependent ascent of intra-limbic connectivity. These novel insights into neuro-endocrine relations are another milestone in the ongoing search for individual markers in stress-related psychopathologies

The deleted in brachydactyly B domain of ROR2 is required for receptor activation by recruitment of Src

The transmembrane receptor 'ROR2' resembles members of the receptor tyrosine kinase family of signalling receptors in sequence but its' signal transduction mechanisms remain enigmatic. This problem has particular importance because mutations in ROR2 are associated with two human skeletal dysmorphology syndromes, recessive Robinow Syndrome (RS) and dominant acting Brachydactyly type B (BDB). Here we show, using a constitutive dimerisation approach, that ROR2 exhibits dimerisation-induced tyrosine kinase activity and the ROR2 C-terminal domain, which is deleted in BDB, is required for recruitment and activation of the non-receptor tyrosine kinase Src. Native ROR2 phosphorylation is induced by the ligand Wnt5a and is blocked by pharmacological inhibition of Src kinase activity. Eight sites of Src-mediated ROR2 phosphorylation have been identified by mass spectrometry. Activation via tyrosine phosphorylation of ROR2 receptor leads to its internalisation into Rab5 positive endosomes. These findings show that BDB mutant receptors are defective in kinase activation as a result of failure to recruit Src

Practical actions to strengthen capacity for deep-water research in Africa

While Africa's deep marine biodiversity offers economic prospects it also supports crucial ecosystem services and sustainable development is dependent on knowledge of these systems. Building understanding of deep-water ecosystems is key, but there are substantial discrepancies in countries' abilities to achieve this. Coinciding with the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference, the Challenger 150 African Network of Deep-water Researchers is pleased to release a report on “Practical Actions to Strengthen Capacity for Deep-water Research in Africa”. Through a series of online workshops, the ANDR brought together 98 individuals from 19 African nations to discuss challenges for deep-water research in Africa, identify solutions to overcome these and propose practical actions going forward

Pre-clinical characterisation of E2814, a high-affinity antibody targeting the microtubule-binding repeat domain of tau for passive immunotherapy in Alzheimer's disease

Tau deposition in the brain is a pathological hallmark of many neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). During the course of these tauopathies, tau spreads throughout the brain via synaptically-connected pathways. Such propagation of pathology is thought to be mediated by tau species (“seeds”) containing the microtubule binding region (MTBR) composed of either three repeat (3R) or four repeat (4R) isoforms. The tau MTBR also forms the core of the neuropathological filaments identified in AD brain and other tauopathies. Multiple approaches are being taken to limit tau pathology, including immunotherapy with anti-tau antibodies. Given its key structural role within fibrils, specifically targetting the MTBR with a therapeutic antibody to inhibit tau seeding and aggregation may be a promising strategy to provide disease-modifying treatment for AD and other tauopathies. Therefore, a monoclonal antibody generating campaign was initiated with focus on the MTBR. Herein we describe the pre-clinical generation and characterisation of E2814, a humanised, high affinity, IgG1 antibody recognising the tau MTBR. E2814 and its murine precursor, 7G6, as revealed by epitope mapping, are antibodies bi-epitopic for 4R and mono-epitopic for 3R tau isoforms because they bind to sequence motif HVPGG. Functionally, both antibodies inhibited tau aggregation in vitro. They also immunodepleted a variety of MTBR-containing tau protein species. In an in vivo model of tau seeding and transmission, attenuation of deposition of sarkosyl-insoluble tau in brain could also be observed in response to antibody treatment. In AD brain, E2814 bound different types of tau filaments as shown by immunogold labelling and recognised pathological tau structures by immunohistochemical staining. Tau fragments containing HVPGG epitopes were also found to be elevated in AD brain compared to PSP or control. Taken together, the data reported here have led to E2814 being proposed for clinical developmen

Association between serum adiponectin levels and muscular fitness in Portuguese adolescents: LabMed Physical Activity Study

Background and aim: Paradoxically, recent investigations have showed that adiponectin levels are inversely associated with muscle strength. However, to date, there is a lack of knowledge on the relationship between muscular fitness (MF) and adiponectin levels in adolescents. We aimed to examine the independent associations between MF and adiponectin levels in adolescents, controlling for several potential confounders.Methods and results: This is a cross-sectional analysis with 529 Portuguese adolescents aged 12-18 years. A MF score was computed as the mean of the handgrip strength and standing long jump standardized values by age and gender. We measured fasting glucose, insulin, HDL-cholesterol, C-reactive protein and adiponectin. Linear regression analysis showed a significant inverse association between adiponectin (Z-score by age and sex) and MF score, after adjustments for age, sex, pubertal stage, socioeconomic status, adherence to the Mediterranean diet, body mass index, HOMA-IR, HDL-cholesterol, C-reactive protein and cardiorespiratory fitness (unstandardized beta = -0.176; p < 0.005). Analysis of covariance showed a significant difference between the Low MF/Non-overweight group and the High MF/Non-overweight Group (p < 0.05) and between the Low MF/Non-overweight and High MF/Overweight Group (p < 0.05) (F ((5,) (523)) = 2.262, p = 0.047).Conclusion: Adiponectin circulating levels are inversely and independently associated with MF. In non-overweight adolescents, those with high levels of MF presented lower levels of adiponectin compared to those with Low MF. Likewise, overweight adolescents with High MF presented lower levels of serum adiponectin than non-overweight adolescents with Low MF. (C) 2016 The Italian Society of Diabetology, the Italian Society for the Study of Atherosclerosis, the Italian Society of Human Nutrition, and the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University.This study was supported by FCT grants: BPD/102381/2014 and BD88984/2012; The author Cesar Aparecido Agostinis Sobrinho was given Doctoral scholarship from Brazilian government by CAPES (Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel) (Proc: 9588-13-2). The Research Centre on Physical Activity Health and Leisure (CIAFEL) is supported by UID/DTP/00617/2013 (FCT). The author Rute Santos has a Discovery Early Career Research Award from the Australian Research Council (DE150101921).The authors gratefully acknowledged the participation of all adolescents and their parents, teachers and schools of the LabMed Study. They also acknowledge the cooperation of volunteer's subjects and the Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure (University of Porto) for the sponsoring the LabMed Study.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio