Benthic enrichment in the Georgia Bight related to Gulf Stream intrusions and estuarine outwelling

The distribution patterns of benthic biomass (microbiota, meiofauna, and macrofauna) over the expansive continental shelf of the Georgia Bight suggest nutrient inputs from intrusions of deep Gulf Stream waters at the shelf break…

Public space in an age of austerity

Through an overview of the decade 2008 to 2017, and looking comparatively across four northern European cities, this paper refects on the changing nature of public space during these austerity years and on the processes of shaping public spaces. The paper draws from the experiences of London, Copenhagen, Malmo and Oslo to explore processes of the design, development, use and management of public spaces during this period. The evidence suggests that we have witnessed a period of signifcant innovation, side by side with major challenges to the collective approach to public spaces. This has led to distinct forms of public spaces that for good or ill have multiplied as a result of the trends discussed in the paper, spaces of; expectation; the private/public sphere; spectacle; respite; infrastructure; diversion; income generation; security; the ephemeral city; community control; occupation; disadvantage; and decline. Episodes of changing practice are set out in the paper and cumulatively reveal distinct and signifcant changes during the austerity era, although not necessarily in the manner that might have been expected. Instead, in these four cities, the impact of austerity seems to have been eclipsed by other evolving and competing public policy goals, and by the evolving range of public space type

Global Disease Burden Estimates of Respiratory Syncytial Virus–Associated Acute Respiratory Infection in Older Adults in 2015::A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Respiratory syncytial virus associated acute respiratory infection (RSV-ARI)constitutes a substantial disease burden in older adults≥65 years. We aimed to identify all studies worldwide investigating the disease burden ofRSV-ARIin this population. We estimated thecommunityincidence, hospitalisationrate and in-hospital case fatality ratio (hCFR) of RSV-ARI in older adults stratified by industrialized anddeveloping regions, with data from a systematic review ofstudies published between January 1996 and April 2018, and from 8 unpublished population-based studies. We applied these rate estimates to population estimates for 2015, to calculate the global and regional burdenin older adults with RSV-ARIin community and in hospital duringthat year. We estimated thenumber ofin-hospital RSV-ARIdeaths by combining hCFR with hospital admission estimates from hospital-based studies. In 2015, there were about 1.5million(95% CI 0.3-6.9) episodes of RSV-ARIin older adults in41industrialised countries (data missing in developing countries), and of these 214,000 (~14.5%; 95% CI 100,000-459,000) were admitted to hospitals. The global number of hospital admissionsforRSV-ARI in older adults was estimated at 336,000 (UR 186,000-614,000).We further estimated about 14,000 (UR 5,000-50,000) in-hospital deaths related to RSV-ARIglobally.The hospital admission rate and hCFR were higher for those ≥65 years than those aged 50-64 years. The disease burden of RSV-ARIamong older adults is substantialwith limited data from developing countries; appropriate prevention and management strategiesare needed to reduce this burden

Endometriosis and Headache

Headache and endometriosis show some similarities in their clinical and epidemiological features that are probably due to the influence of female sexual hormones on both disorders. Epidemiological studies indicate that they are comorbid disorders. However, the nature of the comorbidity is not known with certainty, but a likely explanation may be common susceptibility genes. Another possibility is that, because they both are related to pain, increased pain sensitivity induced by one of the disorders may lead to a higher likelihood of developing the other, possibly mediated by nitrogen oxide or prostaglandins. A common link to the widespread use of estroprogestins may seem less probable. For physicians dealing with women with either of these disorders, awareness of the comorbidity may be helpful in the treatment of the patient

Coastal upwelling in the Rias Bajas, NW Spain: Contrasting the benthic regimes of the Rias de Arosa and de Muros

Nutrient-rich North Atlantic water upwells off the NW coast of Spain and intermittently intrudes into the rias, coastal embayments, by displacement during periods of offshore winds. High primary production associated with the upwelling supports an intensive raft culture of the edible mussel, Mytilus edulis. This culture is most intensive (ca. 2000 rafts) in the Ria de Arosa, and results in one of the highest protein yields per unit area on earth...

Computational prediction of neural progenitor cell fates

Understanding how stem and progenitor cells choose between alternative cell fates is a major challenge in developmental biology. Efforts to tackle this problem have been hampered by the scarcity of markers that can be used to predict cell division outcomes. Here we present a computational method, based on algorithmic information theory, to analyze dynamic features of living cells over time. Using this method, we asked whether rat retinal progenitor cells (RPCs) display characteristic phenotypes before undergoing mitosis that could foretell their fate. We predicted whether RPCs will undergo a self-renewing or terminal division with 99% accuracy, or whether they will produce two photoreceptors or another combination of offspring with 87% accuracy. Our implementation can segment, track and generate predictions for 40 cells simultaneously on a standard computer at 5 min per frame. This method could be used to isolate cell populations with specific developmental potential, enabling previously impossible investigations.The computational aspects of this work were supported by the Center for Subsurface Sensing and Imaging Systems (NSF Grant EEC-9986821), by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. This work was supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Foundation Fighting Blindness – Canada (to M.C). M.C. is a CIHR New Investigator and a W.K. Stell Scholar of the Foundation Fighting Blindness – Canada