Transfer of environmental microbes to the skin and respiratory tract of humans after urban green space exposure

Available online 22 September 2020BACKGROUND: In industrialized countries, non-communicable diseases have been increasing in prevalence since the middle of the 20th century. While the causal mechanisms remain poorly understood, increased population density, pollution, sedentary behavior, smoking, changes in diet, and limited outdoor exposure have all been proposed as significant contributors. Several hypotheses (e.g. Hygiene, Old Friends, and Biodiversity Hypotheses) also suggest that limited environmental microbial exposures may underpin part of this rise in non-communicable diseases. In response, the Microbiome Rewilding Hypothesis proposes that adequate environmental microbial exposures could be achieved by restoring urban green spaces and could potentially decrease the prevalence of non-communicable diseases. However, the microbial interactions between humans and their surrounding environment and the passaging of microbes between both entities remains poorly understood, especially within an urban context. RESULTS: Here, we survey human skin (n = 90 swabs) and nasal (n = 90 swabs) microbiota of three subjects that were exposed to air (n = 15), soil (n = 15), and leaves (n = 15) from different urban green space environments in three different cities across different continents (Adelaide, Australia; Bournemouth, United Kingdom; New Delhi, India). Using 16S ribosomal RNA metabarcoding, we examined baseline controls (pre-exposure) of both skin (n = 16) and nasal (n = 16) swabs and tracked microbiota transfer from the environment to the human body after exposure events. Microbial richness and phylogenetic diversity increased after urban green space exposure in skin and nasal samples collected in two of the three locations. The microbial composition of skin samples also became more similar to soil microbiota after exposure, while nasal samples became more similar to air samples. Nasal samples were more variable between sites and individuals than skin samples. CONCLUSIONS: We show that exposure to urban green spaces can increase skin and nasal microbial diversity and alter human microbiota composition. Our study improves our understanding of human-environmental microbial interactions and suggests that increased exposure to diverse outdoor environments may increase the microbial diversity, which could lead to positive health outcomes for non-communicable diseases.Caitlin A. Selway, Jacob G. Mills, Philip Weinstein, Chris Skelly, Sudesh Yadav, Andrew Lowe, Martin F. Breed, Laura S. Weyric

An architecture for establishing legal semantic workflows in the context of integrated law enforcement

A previous version of this paper was presented at the Third Workshop on Legal Knowledge and the Semantic Web (LK&SW-2016), EKAW-2016, November 19th, Bologna, ItalyTraditionally the integration of data from multiple sources is done on an ad-hoc basis for each to "silos" that prevent sharing data across different agencies or tasks, and is unable to cope with the modern environment, where workflows, tasks, and priorities frequently change. Operating within the Data to Decision Cooperative Research Centre (D2D CRC), the authors are currently involved in the Integrated Law Enforcement Project, which has the goal of developing a federated data platform that will enable the execution of integrated analytics on data accessed from different external and internal sources, thereby providing effective support to an investigator or analyst working to evaluate evidence and manage lines of inquiries in the investigation. Technical solutions should also operate ethically, in compliance with the law, and subject to good governance principles

Comparative gene expression profiling of ADAMs, MMPs, TIMPs, EMMPRIN, EGF-R and VEGFA in low grade meningioma

MMPs (matrix metalloproteinases), ADAMs (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase) and TIMPs (tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases) are implicated in invasion and angiogenesis: both are tissue remodeling processes involving regulated proteolysis of the extracellular matrix, growth factors and their receptors. The expression of these three groups and their correlations with clinical behaviour has been reported in gliomas but a similar comprehensive study in meningiomas is lacking. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the patterns of expression of 23 MMPs, 4 TIMPs, 8 ADAMs, selective growth factors and their receptors in 17 benign meningiomas using a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results indicated very high gene expression of 13 proteases, inhibitors and growth factors studied: MMP2 and MMP14, TIMP-1, -2 and -3, ADAM9, 10, 12, 15 and 17, EGF-R, EMMPRIN and VEGF-A, in almost every meningioma. Expression pattern analysis showed several positive correlations between MMPs, ADAMs, TIMPs and growth factors. Furthermore, our findings suggest that expression of MMP14, ADAM9, 10, 12, 15 and 17, TIMP-2, EGF-R and EMMPRIN reflects histological subtype of meningioma such that fibroblastic subtype had the highest mRNA expression, transitional subtype was intermediate and meningothelial type had the lowest expression. In conclusion, this is the first comprehensive study characterizing gene expression of ADAMs in meningiomas. These neoplasms, although by histological definition benign, have invasive potential. Taken together, the selected elevated gene expression pattern may serve to identify targets for therapeutic intervention or indicators of biological progression and recurrence

Cultural orientations and preference for HRM policies and practices:the case of Oman

This study empirically examines the influence of cultural orientations on employee preferences of human resource management (HRM) policies and practices in Oman. Data were collected from 712 employees working in six large Omani organizations. The findings indicate that there is a number of differences among Omani employees regarding value orientations due especially to age, education and work experience. The findings show a strong orientation towards mastery, harmony, thinking and doing, and a weak orientation towards hierarchy, collectivism, subjugation and human nature-as-evil. The results demonstrate a clear link between value orientations and preferences for particular HRM policies and practices. Group-oriented HRM practices are preferred by those who scored high on collectivism and being orientations, and those who scored low on thinking and doing orientations. Hierarchy-oriented HRM practices are preferred by those scoring high on hierarchy, subjugation and human nature-as-bad orientations, and those scoring low on thinking and mastery orientations. Finally, preference for loose and informal HRM practices was positively associated with being, and negatively associated with thinking, doing and harmony orientations. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed in detail

Language, Religion, and Ethnic Civil War

Are certain ethnic cleavages more conflict-prone than others? While only few scholars focus on the contents of ethnicity, most of those who do argue that political violence is more likely to occur along religious divisions than linguistic ones. We challenge this claim by analyzing the path from linguistic differences to ethnic civil war along three theoretical steps: (1) the perception of grievances by group members, (2) rebel mobilization, and (3) government accommodation of rebel demands. Our argument is tested with a new data set of ethnic cleavages that records multiple linguistic and religious segments for ethnic groups from 1946 to 2009. Adopting a relational perspective, we assess ethnic differences between potential challengers and the politically dominant group in each country. Our findings indicate that intrastate conflict is more likely within linguistic dyads than among religious ones. Moreover, we find no support for the thesis that Muslim groups are particularly conflict-prone

Evidence That Ca2+ within the Microdomain of the L-Type Voltage Gated Ca2+ Channel Activates ERK in MIN6 Cells in Response to Glucagon-Like Peptide-1

Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is released from intestinal L-cells in response to nutrient ingestion and acts upon pancreatic β-cells potentiating glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and stimulating β-cell proliferation, differentiation, survival and gene transcription. These effects are mediated through the activation of multiple signal transduction pathways including the extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. We have previously reported that GLP-1 activates ERK through a mechanism dependent upon the influx of extracellular Ca2+ through L-type voltage gated Ca2+ channels (VGCC). However, the mechanism by which L-type VGCCs couple to the ERK signalling pathway in pancreatic β-cells is poorly understood. In this report, we characterise the relationship between L-type VGCC mediated changes in intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) and the activation of ERK, and demonstrate that the sustained activation of ERK (up to 30 min) in response to GLP-1 requires the continual activation of the L-type VGCC yet does not require a sustained increase in global [Ca2+]i or Ca2+ efflux from the endoplasmic reticulum. Moreover, sustained elevation of [Ca2+]i induced by ionomycin is insufficient to stimulate the prolonged activation of ERK. Using the cell permeant Ca2+ chelators, EGTA-AM and BAPTA-AM, to determine the spatial dynamics of L-type VGCC-dependent Ca2+ signalling to ERK, we provide evidence that a sustained increase in Ca2+ within the microdomain of the L-type VGCC is sufficient for signalling to ERK and that this plays an important role in GLP-1- stimulated ERK activation

Acquisition of a Unique Onshore/Offshore Geophysical and Geochemical Dataset in the Northern Malawi (Nyasa) Rift

The Study of Extension and maGmatism in Malawi aNd Tanzania (SEGMeNT) project acquired a comprehensive suite of geophysical and geochemical datasets across the northern Malawi (Nyasa) rift in the East Africa rift system. Onshore/offshore active and passive seismic data, long‐period and wideband magnetotelluric data, continuous Global Positioning System data, and geochemical samples were acquired between 2012 and 2016. This combination of data is intended to elucidate the sedimentary, crustal, and upper‐mantle architecture of the rift, patterns of active deformation, and the origin and age of rift‐related magmatism. A unique component of our program was the acquisition of seismic data in Lake Malawi, including seismic reflection, onshore/offshore wide‐angle seismic reflection/refraction, and broadband seismic data from lake‐bottom seismometers, a towed streamer, and a large towed air‐gun source