Sustainability threshold for multiple ecosystem services in the Venice lagoon, Italy

One of the biggest challenges for ecosystem services (ES) science is to make the concept operational for decision-making purposes. The capacity to understand the long-term sustainability of multiple ES is still limited, while being highly needed to improve the management of natural resources. This work aims to use ES, and particularly the assessment of their capacity and flow, to explore the sustainability of the ES provision in the coastal social-ecological system of the Venice lagoon, Italy, by adopting a spatially explicit approach. By applying multivariate analysis on the ES maps, a zonation is derived which reflects the different bundles of ES in the lagoon. A new approach to analyze the ES bundles is presented, which determines their degree of sustainability. Building on the rationale that not all combinations of ES are desirable for the long-term maintenance of ES capacity, a ‘sustainability threshold’ for multiple ES is proposed. This threshold corresponds to a balance between ES capacity and flow, and to a balance between the flow of regulating ES and the flow of ES mediated by human activities. The results show that about 53% of the lagoon’s surface is exploited to a level that falls beyond the ‘sustainability threshold’ and thus should be considered in an unsustainable condition. This reveals the need to intervene to change the patterns of ES uses in some areas of the lagoon, to enjoy the benefits offered by the ecosystem without impairing its capacity to provide them. Some potential directions for change are discussed, moving towards a more sustainable management of the lagoon social-ecological system

The influence of naturalness of the landscape structure on children’s connectedness to Nature in north-eastern Italy

Connectedness to Nature and the ability to perceive the restorative value of places characterised by the presence of natural elements are personal characteristics that, when appropriately measured, make it possible to predict an individual’s attitude towards pro-environmental behaviour. While these characteristics have an innate basis, they are also shaped by personal experiences and various cognitive, affective and sociocultural factors. In this exploratory study in North-eastern Italy, we delve into an interdisciplinary field that explores the relationship between the environment of the residential area and its impact on children's attitudes toward Nature. To do so, we conducted a comprehensive questionnaire amongst 533 primary schoolchildren, aged 6-11 years, to gauge their connectedness to Nature, their perceptions of restorativeness in surrounding natural settings, and their schoolyard environment. Drawing from optical satellite imageries, we calculated a combined multispectral index to assess the naturalness degree of participants' residential areas, focusing on their 68 residential areas, located in three administrative Italian Regions (Trentino Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Veneto), which were classified into four different classes with respect to their level of presence of natural areas ("coastal," "low," "average," "high"). By performing non-parametric tests for multiple comparisons amongst groups, we detected a significantly higher level of connectedness to Nature amongst children living in areas with high naturalness, compared to those living in areas with average or low naturalness. Perceived restorativeness scores exhibit a similar trend to that of connectedness to Nature, reinforcing the importance of natural spaces in fostering positive attitudes towards the environment. This result confirms that accessibility and the viewability of natural spaces, even semi-natural ones, seemed to play a crucial role in children's preference for these environments. However, schoolyards were consistently perceived as less regenerative than natural places, regardless of the naturalness of the neighbourhood. These findings raise intriguing questions about the potential consequences of inadequate exposure to Nature on children's affiliation to the natural world and possible subsequent effects on pro-environmental behaviour in adulthood. By shedding light on the complex interplay between personal characteristics, environment and attitudes towards Nature, our study underscores the significance of fostering a deeper connection with natural spaces to nurture a sustainable and environmentally conscious society

BNC2 is a putative tumor suppressor gene in high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma and impacts cell survival after oxidative stress

Rs3814113 is the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) showing the strongest association with high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma (HGSOC) incidence and is located in an intergenic region about 44\u2009kb downstream of basonuclin 2 (BNC2) gene. Lifetime number of ovulations is associated with increased risk to develop HGSOC, probably because of cell damage of extrauterine M\ufcllerian epithelium by ovulation-induced oxidative stress. However, the impact of low-penetrance HGSOC risk alleles (e.g. rs3814113) on the damage induced by oxidative stress remains unclear. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether rs3814113 genetic interval regulates BNC2 expression and whether BNC2 expression levels impact on cell survival after oxidative stress. To do this, we analyzed gene expression levels of BNC2 first in HGSOC data sets and then in an isogenic cell line that we engineered to carry a 5\u2009kb deletion around rs3814113. Finally, we silenced BNC2 and measured surviving cells after hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) treatment to simulate oxidative stress after ovulation. In this paper, we describe that BNC2 expression levels are reduced in HGSOC samples compared with control samples, and that BNC2 expression levels decrease following oxidative stress and ovulation in vitro and in vivo, respectively. Moreover, deletion of 5\u2009kb surrounding rs3814113 decreases BNC2 expression levels in an isogenic cell line, and silencing of BNC2 expression levels increases cell survival after H2O2 treatment. Altogether, our findings suggest that the intergenic region located around rs3814113 regulates BNC2 expression, which in turn affects cell survival after oxidative stress response. Indeed, HGSOC samples present lower BNC2 expression levels that probably, in the initial phases of oncogenic transformation, conferred resistance to oxidative stress and ultimately reduced the clearance of cells with oxidative-induced damages

Global disparities in surgeons’ workloads, academic engagement and rest periods: the on-calL shIft fOr geNEral SurgeonS (LIONESS) study

: The workload of general surgeons is multifaceted, encompassing not only surgical procedures but also a myriad of other responsibilities. From April to May 2023, we conducted a CHERRIES-compliant internet-based survey analyzing clinical practice, academic engagement, and post-on-call rest. The questionnaire featured six sections with 35 questions. Statistical analysis used Chi-square tests, ANOVA, and logistic regression (SPSS® v. 28). The survey received a total of 1.046 responses (65.4%). Over 78.0% of responders came from Europe, 65.1% came from a general surgery unit; 92.8% of European and 87.5% of North American respondents were involved in research, compared to 71.7% in Africa. Europe led in publishing research studies (6.6 ± 8.6 yearly). Teaching involvement was high in North America (100%) and Africa (91.7%). Surgeons reported an average of 6.7 ± 4.9 on-call shifts per month, with European and North American surgeons experiencing 6.5 ± 4.9 and 7.8 ± 4.1 on-calls monthly, respectively. African surgeons had the highest on-call frequency (8.7 ± 6.1). Post-on-call, only 35.1% of respondents received a day off. Europeans were most likely (40%) to have a day off, while African surgeons were least likely (6.7%). On the adjusted multivariable analysis HDI (Human Development Index) (aOR 1.993) hospital capacity > 400 beds (aOR 2.423), working in a specialty surgery unit (aOR 2.087), and making the on-call in-house (aOR 5.446), significantly predicted the likelihood of having a day off after an on-call shift. Our study revealed critical insights into the disparities in workload, access to research, and professional opportunities for surgeons across different continents, underscored by the HDI

Azimuthal anisotropy of charged jet production in root s(NN)=2.76 TeV Pb-Pb collisions

We present measurements of the azimuthal dependence of charged jet production in central and semi-central root s(NN) = 2.76 TeV Pb-Pb collisions with respect to the second harmonic event plane, quantified as nu(ch)(2) (jet). Jet finding is performed employing the anti-k(T) algorithm with a resolution parameter R = 0.2 using charged tracks from the ALICE tracking system. The contribution of the azimuthal anisotropy of the underlying event is taken into account event-by-event. The remaining (statistical) region-to-region fluctuations are removed on an ensemble basis by unfolding the jet spectra for different event plane orientations independently. Significant non-zero nu(ch)(2) (jet) is observed in semi-central collisions (30-50% centrality) for 20 <p(T)(ch) (jet) <90 GeV/c. The azimuthal dependence of the charged jet production is similar to the dependence observed for jets comprising both charged and neutral fragments, and compatible with measurements of the nu(2) of single charged particles at high p(T). Good agreement between the data and predictions from JEWEL, an event generator simulating parton shower evolution in the presence of a dense QCD medium, is found in semi-central collisions. (C) 2015 CERN for the benefit of the ALICE Collaboration. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Peer reviewe

Production of He-4 and (4) in Pb-Pb collisions at root(NN)-N-S=2.76 TeV at the LHC

Results on the production of He-4 and (4) nuclei in Pb-Pb collisions at root(NN)-N-S = 2.76 TeV in the rapidity range vertical bar y vertical bar <1, using the ALICE detector, are presented in this paper. The rapidity densities corresponding to 0-10% central events are found to be dN/dy4(He) = (0.8 +/- 0.4 (stat) +/- 0.3 (syst)) x 10(-6) and dN/dy4 = (1.1 +/- 0.4 (stat) +/- 0.2 (syst)) x 10(-6), respectively. This is in agreement with the statistical thermal model expectation assuming the same chemical freeze-out temperature (T-chem = 156 MeV) as for light hadrons. The measured ratio of (4)/He-4 is 1.4 +/- 0.8 (stat) +/- 0.5 (syst). (C) 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V.Peer reviewe

Forward-central two-particle correlations in p-Pb collisions at root s(NN)=5.02 TeV

Two-particle angular correlations between trigger particles in the forward pseudorapidity range (2.5 2GeV/c. (C) 2015 CERN for the benefit of the ALICE Collaboration. Published by Elsevier B. V.Peer reviewe

Event-shape engineering for inclusive spectra and elliptic flow in Pb-Pb collisions at root(NN)-N-S=2.76 TeV

Peer reviewe