Use of least-cost pathways to identify key road segments for Florida panther conservation

Roads fragment wildlife habitat, and the vehicles that travel them are often a source of wildlife mortality. Often, wildlife populations can absorb this unnatural mortality without suffering declines, but for endangered large mammals like the Florida panther, if their remaining habitat is fragmented or their mortality is increased in other ways (e.g., roadkill), their existence may be imperiled. A landscape approach is critical to identifying key road segments that are important for maintaining unimpeded panther movement. Least-cost pathway (LCP) modeling considers elements within the landscape that facilitate movement and minimize impediments when an animal travels from one area to another. Our analyses identified the most likely LCPs for panthers to use in moving between six major use areas in southwest Florida, and we identified 16 key road segments where these LCPs intersected improved roadways. These intersections correlated well with documented panther roadkill locations and overlapped fixed-kernel panther home ranges. One of our LCPs coursed through an area dominated by citrus groves; this area is strategically located between large blocks of panther habitat, which explains the cluster of panther roadkills at this location. Our analyses supported the habitat stewardship areas of the 2002 Collier County Rural Lands Stewardship Plan; however, we recommend additional protection for the pathway north of County Road 858 and west of State Road 29. We believe that by using a landscape approach, panthers and their habitat can be protected as current road networks are improved, new roads are constructed, and existing panther habitat is altered or disturbed. We did not attempt to map all possible panther–road conflict areas; however, this technique could be applied to other areas, such as possible panther reintroduction areas, as needs arise

Development of an Optimized Medium, Strain and High-Throughput Culturing Methods for Methylobacterium extorquens

Methylobacterium extorquens strains are the best-studied methylotrophic model system, and their metabolism of single carbon compounds has been studied for over 50 years. Here we develop a new system for high-throughput batch culture of M. extorquens in microtiter plates by jointly optimizing the properties of the organism, the growth media and the culturing system. After removing cellulose synthase genes in M. extorquens strains AM1 and PA1 to prevent biofilm formation, we found that currently available lab automation equipment, integrated and managed by open source software, makes possible reliable estimates of the exponential growth rate. Using this system, we developed an optimized growth medium for M. extorquens using response surface methodologies. We found that media that used EDTA as a metal chelator inhibited growth and led to inconsistent culture conditions. In contrast, the new medium we developed with a PIPES buffer and metals chelated by citrate allowed for fast and more consistent growth rates. This new Methylobacterium PIPES (‘MP’) medium was also robust to large deviations in its component ingredients which avoided batch effects from experiments that used media prepared at different times. MP medium allows for faster and more consistent growth than other media used for M. extorquens.Organismic and Evolutionary Biolog

Science and society: The Role of Long-term Studies in Environmental Stewardship

Long-term research should play a crucial role in addressing grand challenges in environmental stewardship. We examine the efforts of five Long Term Ecological Research Network sites to enhance policy, management, and conservation decisions for forest ecosystems. In these case studies, we explore the approaches used to inform policy on atmospheric deposition, public land management, land conservation, and urban forestry, including decisionmaker engagement and integration of local knowledge, application of models to analyze the potential consequences of policy and management decisions, and adaptive management to generate new knowledge and incorporate it into decisionmaking. Efforts to enhance the role of long-term research in informing major environmental challenges would benefit from the development of metrics to evaluate impact; stronger partnerships among research sites, professional societies, decisionmakers, and journalists; and greater investment in efforts to develop, test, and expand practice-based experiments at the interface of science and society

Gathering evidence of external validity for the Foundations of Medicine examination: a collaboration between the National Board of Medical Examiners and the University of Minho

To gather evidence of external validity for the Foundations of Medicine (FOM) examination by assessing the relationship between its subscores and local grades for a sample of Portuguese medical students

Vitamin D Status and 5â Year Changes in Periodontal Disease Measures Among Postmenopausal Women: The Buffalo OsteoPerio Study

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141463/1/jper1321.pd

Validity of predictive equations for 24-h urinary sodium excretion in adults aged 18–39 y1–5

Background: Collecting a 24-h urine sample is recommended for monitoring the mean population sodium intake, but implementation can be difficult. Objective: The objective was to assess the validity of published equations by using spot urinary sodium concentrations to predict 24-h sodium excretion. Design: This was a cross-sectional study, conducted from June to August 2011 in metropolitan Washington, DC, of 407 adults aged 18–39 y, 48% black, who collected each urine void in a separate container for 24 h. Four timed voids (morning, afternoon, evening, and overnight) were selected from each 24-h collection. Published equations were used to predict 24-h sodium excretion with spot urine by specimen timing and race-sex subgroups. We examined mean differences with measured 24-h sodium excretion (bias) and individual differences with the use of Bland-Altman plots. Results: Across equations and specimens, mean bias in predicting 24-h sodium excretion for all participants ranged from2267 to 1300mg (Kawasaki equation). Bias was least with International Cooperative Study on Salt, Other Factors, and Blood Pressure (INTERSALT) equations with morning (2165 mg; 95% CI: 2295, 36 mg), afternoon (290 mg; 2208, 28 mg), and evening (2120 mg; 2230, 211 mg) specimens. With overnight specimens, mean bias was least when the Tanaka (223 mg; 95% CI: 2141, 95 mg) or Mage (2145 mg; 2314, 25 mg) equations were used but was statistically significant when using the Tanaka equations among females (216 to 243 mg) and the Mage equations among races other than black (2554 to 2372 mg). Significant over- and underprediction occurred across individual sodium excretion concentrations. Conclusions: Using a single spot urine, INTERSALT equations may provide the least biased information about population mean sodium intakes among young US adults. None of the equations evaluated provided unbiased estimates of individual 24-h sodium excretion. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01631240

Twelve-Month Suicidal Symptoms and Use of Services Among Adolescents: Results From the National Comorbidity Survey

Objective The study assessed the prevalence of suicidal ideation, suicide plans, and suicide attempts as well as patterns of mental health service use among adolescents. Methods Data came from the National Comorbidity Survey–Adolescent Supplement, a nationally representative sample of 10,123 adolescents aged 13 to 18 years who participated in computer-assisted, face-to-face interviews between February 2001 and January 2004. Prevalences of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in the past year were determined. Past-year use of any mental health treatment and receipt of four or more visits from one provider among youths with suicidal ideation, plans, or attempts were also assessed. Associations were evaluated by using logistic regression. Results During the course of 12 months, 3.6% of adolescents reported suicidal ideation without a plan or attempt, .6% reported a suicide plan without an attempt, and 1.9% made a suicide attempt. Overall, two-thirds of adolescents with suicidal ideation (67.3%) and half of those with a plan (54.4%) or attempt (56.9%) did not have any contact with a mental health specialist in the past year. Different predictors of use of care were identified for each group. Conclusions Adolescent suicidality often is untreated in the United States. Increased outreach efforts to improve treatment access for youths with suicidal ideation and attempts are needed.Psycholog

Surveillance transbronchial lung biopsies: Implication for survival after lung transplantation

AbstractObjectives: We wished to determine whether early rejection after lung transplantation as assessed by surveillance transbronchial biopsy predicts for survival. Methods: Between 1990 and 1997, 96 consecutive patients had lung transplantation: 89 had a minimum 1-month follow-up. For 71 consecutive patients we have 1-year follow-up and for 69 patients we have the results of the first 3 biopsies. Cytomegalovirus status, bronchiolitis obliterans prevalence, and use of total lymphoid irradiation are noted. Biopsies were done at 1 week and 1, 3, and 6 months. Standard immunosuppression consisted of induction antilymphocyte globulin and high-dose methylprednisolone induction for 1 week and standard maintenance triple therapy. Acute rejection treatment was with pulse methylprednisolone. Bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome was treated with total lymphoid irradiation and a change to tacrolimus and mycophenolate. Blinded grading using International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation classification was done retrospectively. Results: Survival at 1 month and 1, 2, and 3 years for the 96-patient cohort with 1-year follow-up was 93%, 74%, 62%, and 56%. Survival was not significantly different for subsets with rejection on any combination of the first 3 biopsies (1/3, 2/3, 3/3) or absence of rejection on the first 3 biopsies. Ninety-one positive biopsy results were graded. Eighteen of 71 patients had one or more moderate or severe rejection episodes without survival difference relative to the others. There was no statistically significant association between acute rejection on the first 3 surveillance biopsy results and bronchiolitis obliterans. Conclusions: Intensive induction and maintenance immunotherapy with surveillance transbronchial biopsies and aggressive treatment of acute rejection is associated with a survival similar to that of patients without early acute rejection. This regimen appears to uncouple the association between early acute rejection and bronchiolitis obliterans. Further study may elucidate this mechanism. (J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2000;119:27-38

The evolution of postpollination reproductive isolation in Costus

Reproductive isolation is critical to the diversification of species. Postpollination barriers may be important in limiting gene flow between closely related species, but they are relatively cryptic and their evolution is poorly understood. Here, we review the role of postpollination reproductive isolation in plants, including the various stages at which it operates and the hypotheses for how it may evolve. We then review empirical studies in the plant genus Costus, evaluating documented postpollination barriers in light of these hypotheses. We summarize isolation due to parental style length differences and present evidence supporting the hypothesis that the differences are in part a by-product of selection on floral morphology. Additionally, we show that reduced pollen adhesion, germination, and tube growth contribute to reproductive isolation between two closely related sympatric species of Costus. Geographic variation in the strength of these crossing barriers supports the hypothesis that they evolved under reinforcement, or direct natural selection to strengthen isolation

The Vehicle, Spring 1980

Vol. 3, No. 2 Table of Contents White LanguageStarla Stensaaspage 4 The Grand Canyon at SunsetElisabeth Cristpage 5 WitheringSheila Kattypage 5 In Defense of the DandelionKathleen Alakspage 6 HaikuScott Fishelpage 7 Double SolitaireCathy Georgepage 8 AdolescenceNancy Douglaspage 9 Sunrises as SunsetsRobert Schumacherpage 9 War Is Not All HellChris Goerlichpage 11 Young SoldierRobert Swansonpage 11 Without Really Looking For ThemSheila Kattypage 12 JourneyJean Wallacepage 15 I Barely Remember the Poet/TeacherStarla Stensaaspage 16 To SearchKaren Buchananpage 17 Four-Hundred and Twenty-Four DaysAnnette Heinzpage 19 Killing CarpJerry McAnultypage 20 War of the WillsLaurel Anzelmopage 21 Life of a Sexual MetaphorChris Goerlichpage 23 Hazy Days in Mid-JulyKaren Buchananpage 24 August\u27s EndCynthia Rozminpage 24 Visiting GrandmotherRobert Swansonpage 26 UntitledNancy Van Cleavepage 27 The AlbinoDenise Davinroypage 27 This ChristmasRobert Schumacherpage 28 Burnt OfferingGinny Stroheckerpage 29 Long-term VacationDenise Davinroypage 29 Storm\u27s EveJeffrey Stousepage 30 Lovers: A Weaver in the StatesStarla Stensaaspage 31 Gitchegumme BeachScott Fishelpage 32 Dear Husband, What Do You Think?Katherine Adamspage 33 Cat\u27s Eve InnCynthia Rozminpage 34 BassScott Fishelpage 34 Fall Morning in the Okanagan ValleyJerry McAnultypage 35 MusicMary McDanielpage 36 AnticipationNancy Douglaspage 41 Don\u27t Let Your Bread LoafJohn Stockmanpage 41 The FieldElise Hempelpage 42 the g.a.Carla Vitezpage 42 Quality in Search of An AuthorRobert Schinaglpage 43 February 9thLisa Livingstonpage 44 By A Pond in SpringJohn Stockmanpage 46 Night SoundsJeffrey Stousepage 47 Art CoverKaren Dankovich PhotographCindy Hubbarttpage 3 PhotographScott Fishelpage 10 PhotographLisa Larsonpage 18 EtchingKaren Dankovichpage 25 PhotographScott Fishelpage 30 PhotographScott Fishelpage 40 PhotographCindy Hubbarttpage 45 PhotographCindy Hubbarttpage 48https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1037/thumbnail.jp