Synchrony in relationships between the North Atlantic Oscillation and water chemistry among Sweden's largest lakes

The North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) is commonly presented as an easy and reliable index that can be used to study climatic effects on aquatic ecosystems. Here, the NAO winter index (NAO(w)) was applied to determine effects of winter climate changes on 13 water chemical variables measured monthly at 16 sites in Sweden's three largest lakes (Vanern, Vattern, and Malaren). The NAO(w) strongly affected meteorological, physical, and consequently also chemical conditions. Significant relationships were numerous in Sweden's three largest lakes, but they exhibited little agreement among lakes and even across a lake. Synchronous relationships between the NAO(w) and water chemistry among lake sites were restricted to variables closely linked to surface-water temperature (i.e., reactive silica and pH in May). The weaker the association of a lake variable with water temperature, the weaker the mean NAO(w) signal on the variable over the 16 lake sites. The results of this study might facilitate the prediction of lake ecosystem responses to future changes in the weather over a large region

Delay Differential Analysis of Seizures in Multichannel Electrocorticography Data

High-density electrocorticogram (ECoG) electrodes are capable of recording neurophysiological data with high temporal resolution with wide spatial coverage. These recordings are a window to understanding how the human brain processes information and subsequently behaves in healthy and pathologic states. Here, we describe and implement delay differential analysis (DDA) for the characterization of ECoG data obtained from human patients with intractable epilepsy. DDA is a time-domain analysis framework based on embedding theory in nonlinear dynamics that reveals the nonlinear invariant properties of an unknown dynamical system. The DDA embedding serves as a low-dimensional nonlinear dynamical basis onto which the data are mapped. This greatly reduces the risk of overfitting and improves the method's ability to fit classes of data. Since the basis is built on the dynamical structure of the data, preprocessing of the data (e.g., filtering) is not necessary. We performed a large-scale search for a DDA model that best fit ECoG recordings using a genetic algorithm to qualitatively discriminate between different cortical states and epileptic events for a set of 13 patients. A single DDA model with only three polynomial terms was identified. Singular value decomposition across the feature space of the model revealed both global and local dynamics that could differentiate electrographic and electroclinical seizures and provided insights into highly localized seizure onsets and diffuse seizure terminations. Other common ECoG features such as interictal periods, artifacts, and exogenous stimuli were also analyzed with DDA. This novel framework for signal processing of seizure information demonstrates an ability to reveal unique characteristics of the underlying dynamics of the seizure and may be useful in better understanding, detecting, and maybe even predicting seizures

Increasing dissimilarity of water chemical compositions in a warmer climate

Understanding variability patterns of biogeochemical conditions in water is a key issue for water management strategies. Here a unique homogeneous data set of 1041 Swedish boreal lakes, sampled during three lake inventories along an 8 degrees latitudinal temperature gradient, revealed a systematic increase in the variability of the water chemical composition between lakes with increasing temperatures. The variability pattern was consistent on a spatial and temporal scale and became especially apparent for water chemical variables showing an in-lake biological process-driven seasonality, such as nitrogen, pH, silica, and organic carbon. The degree of dissimilarity in the chemical composition between lakes was well related to the duration of the main growing and runoff season (D-T > 0), both on a spatial scale (R-2 = 0.57-0.79, P < 0.05) and a temporal scale (R-2 = 0.99, P < 0.05). It is suggested that D-T > 0 is a very suitable proxy to explain biogeochemical variability patterns between lakes. According to this study, a further temperature increase will result in an increased biogeochemical dissimilarity between lakes

Quantitative relations between biomass and organic/inorganic resuspended particulate matter

During a period of two years, organic and inorganic suspended particulate matter and phytoplankton biomass was frequently measured in Lake Erken, a moderately deep, eutrophic lake in south-eastern Sweden. Regression analyses of these data were used to differentiate and quantify newly produced planktonic particulate matter (zooplankton + phytoplankton + bacteria) and different types of resuspended particulate matter (organic, inorganic). Resuspended particulate matter was frequently dominant in the water column (yearly mean 59% of suspended particulate matter), and resuspended particulate organic matter ranged from 11 to 99% of suspended particulate organic matter (yearly mean: 40%). The high amount of resuspended particulate matter originates from erosion/transportation bottoms which are located at water depths above 16 m and which cover 93% of the lake area. Resuspended particulate matter was significantly related to diatom biomass but not to any other type of planktonic biomass. Consequently, the seasonal variations in the amount and distribution of diatoms can be explained by the hydrodynamic processes which affect the amount and distribution of resuspended particulate matter while seasonal variations in the amount and distribution of other planktonic biomass need further explanations, like active swimming, floating and grazing resistance

Nonlinear temperature response of lake ice breakup

A uniquely comprehensive set of four decades of ice breakup data from 196 Swedish lakes covering 13degrees of latitude (55.7degrees N to 68.4degrees N) shows the relationship between the timing of lake ice breakup and air temperature to be an arc cosine function. The nonlinearity inherent in this relationship results in marked differences in the response of the timing of lake ice breakup to changes in air temperature between colder and warmer geographical regions, and between colder and warmer time periods. The spatial and temporal patterns are mutually consistent, suggesting that climate change impacts on the timing of lake ice breakup will vary along a temperature gradient. This has potentially important ramifications for the employment of lake ice phenologies as climate indicators and for the future behavior of lacustrine ecosystem

Subarachnoid-to-Subarachnoid Shunt for Correction of Nonfunctioning Baclofen Pump in a Severe Case of Chronic Debilitating Post–Spinal Cord Injury Spasticity

Background Perhaps the most disabling condition seen in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) is spasticity. Spasticity is characterized as hyperreflexia and hypertonicity as a result of damage to the supraspinal tracts in the aftermath of SCI. Intrathecal baclofen (ITB) is the mainstay therapy for spasticity unresponsive to oral baclofen. One of the problems associated with post-SCI spasticity unresponsive to ITB is the development of scar tissue that prevents the diffusion of baclofen in the desired spinal cord area. This case offers a unique strategy to deal with multilevel scar tissue. Clinical Presentation This 46-year-old paraplegic male with a T8 SCI whose spasticity had been well managed with ITB therapy for many years recently suffered intractable spasticity necessitating multiple reoperations for a nonfunctioning ITB catheter secondary to extensive scar tissue and intrathecal adhesions. Placement of a subarachnoid-to-subarachnoid shunt eliminated the problem of extensive scar tissue preventing adequate baclofen therapy. Conclusions After undergoing multilevel thoracic and lumbar laminectomies with subarachnoid-to-subarachnoid spinal shunt, the patient's spasticity was finally brought under control with adequate daily baclofen infusion. This case demonstrates a creative way to address ITB catheter failure before considering other measures, such as neuroablative procedures (e.g., rhizotomy, myelotomy). This case reinforces the recommendation that ablative procedures, which have far greater complications, should be reserved for patients who have failed medical or other nonablative therapies

Targeting the anti-apoptotic BCL-2 family members for the treatment of cancer

Most cells express a variety of both anti-apoptotic and pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 proteins and the interaction within this family dictates whether a cell survives or dies. The dysregulation of the anti-anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members is one of the defining features of cancer cells in comparison to normal cells, and significantly contributes to the resistance of cancer cells to current treatment modalities. This anti-apoptotic subfamily of proteins is now a major target in the development of new methods to improve treatment outcomes for cancer patients. Several drugs directed at inhibiting Bcl-2 and related anti-apoptotic proteins have been developed with some showing considerable promise in the clinic. This Review presents the current knowledge of the role of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family in cancer cells, as well as current and future perspectives on targeting this subfamily of proteins for therapeutic intervention in human malignancies. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled “Apoptosis: Four Decades Later”

Geographic and tourist position of Ternopil region as a factor of tourism development

The quantity of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from inland waters into the atmosphere varies, depending on spatial and temporal variations in the partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2) in waters. Using 22,664 water samples from 851 boreal lakes and 64 boreal streams, taken from different water depths and during different months we found large spatial and temporal variations in pCO2, ranging from below atmospheric equilibrium to values greater than 20,000 μatm with a median value of 1048 μatm for lakes (n = 11,538 samples) and 1176 μatm for streams (n = 11,126). During the spring water mixing period in April/May, distributions of pCO2 were not significantly different between stream and lake ecosystems (P > 0.05), suggesting that pCO2 in spring is determined by processes that are common to lakes and streams. During other seasons of the year, however, pCO2 differed significantly between lake and stream ecosystems (P < 0.0001). The variable that best explained the differences in seasonal pCO2 variations between lakes and streams was the temperature difference between bottom and surface waters. Even small temperature differences resulted in a decline of pCO2 in lake surface waters. Minimum pCO2 values in lake surface waters were reached in July. Towards autumn pCO2 strongly increased again in lake surface waters reaching values close to the ones found in stream surface waters. Although pCO2 strongly increased in the upper water column towards autumn, pCO2 in lake bottom waters still exceeded the pCO2 in surface waters of lakes and streams. We conclude that throughout the year CO2 is concentrated in bottom waters of boreal lakes, although these lakes are typically shallow with short water retention times. Highly varying amounts of this CO2 reaches surface waters and evades to the atmosphere. Our findings have important implications for up-scaling CO2 fluxes from single lake and stream measurements to regional and global annual fluxes

Controls of dissolved organic matter quality: Evidence from a large-scale boreal lake survey

Inland waters transport large amounts of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from terrestrial environments to the oceans, but DOM also reacts en route, with substantial water column losses by mineralization and sedimentation. For DOM transformations along the aquatic continuum, lakes play an important role as they retain waters in the landscape allowing for more time to alter DOM. We know DOM losses are significant at the global scale, yet little is known about how the reactivity of DOM varies across landscapes and climates. DOM reactivity is inherently linked to its chemical composition. We used fluorescence spectroscopy to explore DOM quality from 560 lakes distributed across Sweden and encompassed a wide climatic gradient typical of the boreal ecozone. Six fluorescence components were identified using parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC). The intensity and relative abundance of these components were analyzed in relation to lake chemistry, catchment, and climate characteristics. Land cover, particularly the percentage of water in the catchment, was a primary factor explaining variability in PARAFAC components. Likewise, lake water retention time influenced DOM quality. These results suggest that processes occurring in upstream water bodies, in addition to the lake itself, have a dominant influence on DOM quality. PARAFAC components with longer emission wavelengths, or red-shifted components, were most reactive. In contrast, protein-like components were most persistent within lakes. Generalized characteristics of PARAFAC components based on emission wavelength could ease future interpretation of fluorescence spectra. An important secondary influence on DOM quality was mean annual temperature, which ranged between −6.2 and +7.5 °C. These results suggest that DOM reactivity depends more heavily on the duration of time taken to pass through the landscape, rather than temperature. Projected increases in runoff in the boreal region may force lake DOM toward a higher overall amount and proportion of humic-like substances

Regional Variability and Drivers of Below Ice CO2 in Boreal and Subarctic Lakes

Northern lakes are ice-covered for considerable portions of the year, where carbon dioxide (CO2) can accumulate below ice, subsequently leading to high CO2 emissions at ice-melt. Current knowledge on the regional control and variability of below ice partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO(2)) is lacking, creating a gap in our understanding of how ice cover dynamics affect the CO2 accumulation below ice and therefore CO2 emissions from inland waters during the ice-melt period. To narrow this gap, we identified the drivers of below ice pCO(2) variation across 506 Swedish and Finnish lakes using water chemistry, lake morphometry, catchment characteristics, lake position, and climate variables. We found that lake depth and trophic status were the most important variables explaining variations in below ice pCO(2) across the 506 lakes(.) Together, lake morphometry and water chemistry explained 53% of the site-to-site variation in below ice pCO(2). Regional climate (including ice cover duration) and latitude only explained 7% of the variation in below ice pCO(2). Thus, our results suggest that on a regional scale a shortening of the ice cover period on lakes may not directly affect the accumulation of CO2 below ice but rather indirectly through increased mobility of nutrients and carbon loading to lakes. Thus, given that climate-induced changes are most evident in northern ecosystems, adequately predicting the consequences of a changing climate on future CO2 emission estimates from northern lakes involves monitoring changes not only to ice cover but also to changes in the trophic status of lakes.Peer reviewe