Application of a physically based model to forecast shallow landslides at a regional scale

<p>In this work, we apply a physically based model, namely the HIRESSS (HIgh REsolution Slope Stability Simulator) model, to forecast the occurrence of shallow landslides at the regional scale. HIRESSS is a physically based distributed slope stability simulator for analyzing shallow landslide triggering conditions during a rainfall event. The modeling software is made up of two parts: hydrological and geotechnical. The hydrological model is based on an analytical solution from an approximated form of the Richards equation, while the geotechnical stability model is based on an infinite slope model that takes the unsaturated soil condition into account. The test area is a portion of the Aosta Valley region, located in the northwest of the Alpine mountain chain. The geomorphology of the region is characterized by steep slopes with elevations ranging from 400 m a.s.l. on the Dora Baltea River's floodplain to 4810 m a.s.l. at Mont Blanc. In the study area, the mean annual precipitation is about 800–900 mm. These features make the territory very prone to landslides, mainly shallow rapid landslides and rockfalls. In order to apply the model and to increase its reliability, an in-depth study of the geotechnical and hydrological properties of hillslopes controlling shallow landslide formation was conducted. In particular, two campaigns of on site measurements and laboratory experiments were performed using 12 survey points. The data collected contributed to the generation of an input map of parameters for the HIRESSS model. In order to consider the effect of vegetation on slope stability, the soil reinforcement due to the presence of roots was also taken into account; this was done based on vegetation maps and literature values of root cohesion. The model was applied using back analysis for two past events that affected the Aosta Valley region between 2008 and 2009, triggering several fast shallow landslides. The validation of the results, carried out using a database of past landslides, provided good results and a good prediction accuracy for the HIRESSS model from both a temporal and spatial point of view.</p

IT-SNOW: a snow reanalysis for Italy blending modeling, in situ data, and satellite observations (2010-2021)

We present IT-SNOW, a serially complete and multi-year snow reanalysis for Italy (similar to 301 x 10(3) km(2)) - a transitional continental-to-Mediterranean region where snow plays an important but still poorly constrained societal and ecological role. IT-SNOW provides similar to 500 m daily maps of snow water equivalent (SWE), snow depth, bulk snow density, and liquid water content for the initial period 1 September 2010-31 August 2021, with future updates envisaged on a regular basis. As the output of an operational chain employed in real-world civil protection applications (S3M Italy), IT-SNOW ingests input data from thousands of automatic weather stations, snow-covered-area maps from Sentinel-2, MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer), and H SAF products, as well as maps of snow depth from the spatialization of over 350 on-the-ground snow depth sensors. Validation using Sentinel-1-based maps of snow depth and a variety of independent, in situ snow data from three focus regions (Aosta Valley, Lombardy, and Molise) show little to no mean bias compared to the former, and root mean square errors are of the typical order of 30-60 cm and 90-300 mm for in situ, measured snow depth and snow water equivalent, respectively. Estimates of peak SWE by IT-SNOW are also well correlated with annual streamflow at the closure section of 102 basins across Italy (0.87), with ratios between peak water volume in snow and annual streamflow that are in line with expectations for this mixed rain-snow region (22 % on average and 12 % median). Examples of use allowed us to estimate 13.70 +/- 4.9 Gm3 of water volume stored in snow across the Italian landscape at peak accumulation, which on average occurs on 4 March +/- 10 d. Nearly 52 % of the mean seasonal SWE is accumulated across the Po river basin, followed by the Adige river (23 %), and central Apennines (5 %). IT-SNOW is freely available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7034956 (Avanzi et al., 2022b) and can contribute to better constraining the role of snow for seasonal to annual water resources - a crucial endeavor in a warming and drier climate

The Germ Cell Nuclear Proteins hnRNP G-T and RBMY Activate a Testis-Specific Exon

The human testis has almost as high a frequency of alternative splicing events as brain. While not as extensively studied as brain, a few candidate testis-specific splicing regulator proteins have been identified, including the nuclear RNA binding proteins RBMY and hnRNP G-T, which are germ cell-specific versions of the somatically expressed hnRNP G protein and are highly conserved in mammals. The splicing activator protein Tra2β is also highly expressed in the testis and physically interacts with these hnRNP G family proteins. In this study, we identified a novel testis-specific cassette exon TLE4-T within intron 6 of the human transducing-like enhancer of split 4 (TLE4) gene which makes a more transcriptionally repressive TLE4 protein isoform. TLE4-T splicing is normally repressed in somatic cells because of a weak 5′ splice site and surrounding splicing-repressive intronic regions. TLE4-T RNA pulls down Tra2β and hnRNP G proteins which activate its inclusion. The germ cell-specific RBMY and hnRNP G-T proteins were more efficient in stimulating TLE4-T incorporation than somatically expressed hnRNP G protein. Tra2b bound moderately to TLE4-T RNA, but more strongly to upstream sites to potently activate an alternative 3′ splice site normally weakly selected in the testis. Co-expression of Tra2β with either hnRNP G-T or RBMY re-established the normal testis physiological splicing pattern of this exon. Although they can directly bind pre-mRNA sequences around the TLE4-T exon, RBMY and hnRNP G-T function as efficient germ cell-specific splicing co-activators of TLE4-T. Our study indicates a delicate balance between the activity of positive and negative splicing regulators combinatorially controls physiological splicing inclusion of exon TLE4-T and leads to modulation of signalling pathways in the testis. In addition, we identified a high-affinity binding site for hnRNP G-T protein, showing it is also a sequence-specific RNA binding protein

Marine pollution by hydrocarbures ; study of consequences on Mytilus edulis, with respect to the delay since pollution

Grâce à la collaboration de trois services à l’occasion d’une pollution de la Manche par du fuel n° 2, des analyses de prélèvements de moules, échelonnés sur moins de 2 mois dans deux secteurs pollués, ont permis d’apprécier la teneur encore élevée au 9e jour, en carbures aromatiques et en 3/4 benzopyrène et le retour à une teneur n’excédant pas la teneur d’échantillons témoins, en moins de 42 jours avec régression plus rapide pour le B.T.A.Thanks to the collaboration of three medical departments, with regard to a pollution of the Channel by fuel-oil n° 2, samples of mussels were taken, within less than 2 months in two polluated areas. Their analysis has allowed to determine their still high aromatic carbides and 3/4 benzopyrene content on the 9 th day and the reversion to a content which did not exceed that of the check samples in less than 42 days with a quicker regression as to A.T.B

Snow multivariable data assimilation for hydrological predictions in Alpine sites

EGU General Assembly 2017, Vienna, AUT, 23-/04/2017 - 28/04/2017International audienceSeveral snowmodels have been developed with different degrees of complexity (Essery et al. 2013).Goal: physically based snowmodel designed to be:&amp;#8226;suited to real time hydrological applications;&amp;#8226;coupled with a multivariable DA scheme &amp;#8594; limited modelcomplexity

A novel family of plant splicing factors with a Zn knuckle motif: examination of RNA binding and splicing activities

An important group of splicing factors involved in constitutive and alternative splicing contain an arginine/serine (RS)-rich domain. We have previously demonstrated the existence of such factors in plants and report now on a new family of splicing factors (termed the RSZ family) from Arabidopsis thaliana which additionally harbor a Zn knuckle motif similar to the human splicing factor 9G8. Although only around 20 kDa in size, members of this family possess a multi-domain structure. In addition to the N-terminal RNA recognition motif (RRM), a Zn finger motif of the CCHC-type is inserted in an RGG-rich region; all three motifs are known to contribute to RNA binding. The C-terminal domain has a characteristic repeated structure which is very arginine-rich and centered around an SP dipeptide. One member of this family, atRSZp22, has been shown to be a phosphoprotein with properties similar to SR proteins. Furthermore, atRSZp22 was able to complement efficiently splicing deficient mammalian S100 as well as h9G8-depleted extracts. RNA binding assays to selected RNA sequences indicate an RNA binding specificity similar to the human splicing factors 9G8 and SRp20. Taken together, these result show that atRSZp22 is a true plant splicing factor which combines structural and functional features of both h9G8 and hSRp20.Sergiy Lopato, Renata Gattoni, Gustav Fabini, James Stevenin and Andrea Bart