Vultures acquire information on carcass location from scavenging eagles

Vultures are recognized as the scroungers of the natural world, owing to their ecological role as obligate scavengers. While it is well known that vultures use intraspecific social information as they forage, the possibility of inter-guild social information transfer and the resulting multi-species social dilemmas has not been explored. Here, we use data on arrival times at carcasses to show that such social information transfer occurs, with raptors acting as producers of information and vultures acting as scroungers of information. We develop a game-theoretic model to show that competitive asymmetry, whereby vultures dominate raptors at carcasses, predicts this evolutionary outcome. We support this theoretical prediction using empirical data from competitive interactions at carcasses. Finally, we use an individual-based model to show that these producer-scrounger dynamics lead to vultures being vulnerable to declines in raptor populations. Our results show that social information transfer can lead to important non-trophic interactions among species and highlight important potential links among social evolution, community ecology and conservation biology. With vulture populations suffering global declines, our study underscores the importance of ecosystem-based management for these endangered keystone species

One-Year Analysis of the Prospective Multicenter SENTRY Clinical Trial: Safety and Effectiveness of the Novate Sentry Bioconvertible Inferior Vena Cava Filter

Purpose To prospectively assess the Sentry bioconvertible inferior vena cava (IVC) filter in patients requiring temporary protection against pulmonary embolism (PE). Materials and Methods At 23 sites, 129 patients with documented deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or PE, or at temporary risk of developing DVT or PE, unable to use anticoagulation were enrolled. The primary end point was clinical success, including successful filter deployment, freedom from new symptomatic PE through 60 days before filter bioconversion, and 6-month freedom from filter-related complications. Patients were monitored by means of radiography, computerized tomography (CT), and CT venography to assess filtering configuration through 60 days, filter bioconversion, and incidence of PE and filter-related complications through 12 months. Results Clinical success was achieved in 111 of 114 evaluable patients (97.4%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 92.5%–99.1%). The rate of freedom from new symptomatic PE through 60 days was 100% (n = 129, 95% CI 97.1%–100.0%), and there were no cases of PE through 12 months for either therapeutic or prophylactic indications. Two patients (1.6%) developed symptomatic caval thrombosis during the first month; neither experienced recurrence after successful interventions. There was no filter tilting, migration, embolization, fracture, or caval perforation by the filter, and no filter-related death through 12 months. Filter bioconversion was successful for 95.7% (110/115) at 6 months and for 96.4% (106/110) at 12 months. Conclusions The Sentry IVC filter provided safe and effective protection against PE, with a high rate of intended bioconversion and a low rate of device-related complications, through 12 months of imaging-intense follow-up

An enigmatic hypoplastic defect of the maxillary lateral incisor in recent and fossil orangutans from Sumatra (Pongo abelii) and Borneo (Pongo pygmaeus)

Developmental dental pathologies provide insight into health of primates during ontogeny, and are particularly useful for elucidating the environment in which extant and extinct primates matured. Our aim is to evaluate whether the prevalence of an unusual dental defect on the mesiolabial enamel of the upper lateral incisor, thought to reflect dental crowding during maturation, is lesser in female orangutans, with their smaller teeth, than in males; and in Sumatran orangutans, from more optimal developmental habitats, than in those from Borneo. Our sample includes 49 Pongo pygmaeus (87 teeth), 21 P. abelii (38 teeth), Late Pleistocene paleo-orangutans from Sumatra and Vietnam (67 teeth), Late Miocene catarrhines Lufengpithecus lufengensis (2 teeth), and Anapithecus hernyaki (7 teeth). Methods include micro-CT scans, radiography, and dental metrics of anterior teeth. We observed fenestration between incisor crypts and marked crowding of unerupted crowns, which could allow tooth-to-tooth contact. Tooth size does not differ significantly in animals with or without the defect, implicating undergrowth of the jaw as the proximate cause of dental crowding and defect presence. Male orangutans from both islands show more defects than do females. The defect is significantly more common in Bornean orangutans (71 %) compared to Sumatran (29 %). Prevalence among fossil forms falls between these extremes, except that all five individual Anapithecus show one or both incisors with the defect. We conclude that maxillary lateral incisor defect is a common developmental pathology of apes that is minimized in optimal habitats and that such evidence can be used to infer habitat quality in extant and fossil apes

Optical imaging and spectroscopy for the study of the human brain: status report.

This report is the second part of a comprehensive two-part series aimed at reviewing an extensive and diverse toolkit of novel methods to explore brain health and function. While the first report focused on neurophotonic tools mostly applicable to animal studies, here, we highlight optical spectroscopy and imaging methods relevant to noninvasive human brain studies. We outline current state-of-the-art technologies and software advances, explore the most recent impact of these technologies on neuroscience and clinical applications, identify the areas where innovation is needed, and provide an outlook for the future directions

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

Virtual Weigh Station

Overweight trucks shorten highway life and indirectly increase the costs of maintaining roads. Improved methods for enforcement of commercial vehicle weight laws may increase the number of overweight vehicles caught, thereby prolonging highway life. Improved enforcement may also reduce the number of illegally operating vehicles. This report describes the concept of using existing INDOT Weigh-In-Motion equipment, a laptop computer, and wireless communication equipment, to develop a virtual weigh station screening tool. The Virtual Weigh Station screening tool developed in this project allows officers to read the weights of vehicles crossing WIM scales, in real time, in their patrol cars. Giving officers this information increases the chances that the vehicles selected for weighing on portable scales are indeed overweight. This report documents the accuracy and precision evaluation performed on all the candidate WIM sites as well as the new infrastructure required to implement the Virtual Weigh Station concept. The report describes several cases where significantly overweight vehicles were identified and impounded. For example the procedures described in this report, resulted in the identifying the early morning hours as the best time for enforcement in Merrillville. As a result, on May 18, 2001 vehicles weighing 98,700 lbs and 100,600 lbs were stopped. Those vehicles were impounded and resulted in fines of $1,625.00 and$1,735.50, respectively. In February 2002, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement officers stopped ten trucks on US 24 near Fort Wayne using the virtual weigh station. Eight of the trucks were determined to be overweight and fined. The three heaviest trucks weighed 90,200 lbs, 90,900 lbs, and 91,100 lbs resulting in fines of $1,099.50,$1,169.50, and $1,189.50, respectively. On April 12, 2002, another enforcement was conducted on I-65 near Merrillville. Three trucks were stopped based on the virtual weigh station data. One of the trucks weighed 87,400 lbs, resulting in a$529.50 fine. The report concludes by making several recommendations designed to improve the quality of the WIM data and facilitate wide spread deployment by the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division

Effect on postpartum hemorrhage of prophylactic oxytocin (10 IU) by injection by community health officers in Ghana: a community-based, cluster-randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Oxytocin (10 IU) is the drug of choice for prevention of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). Its use has generally been restricted to medically trained staff in health facilities. We assessed the effectiveness, safety, and feasibility of PPH prevention using oxytocin injected by peripheral health care providers without midwifery skills at home births. METHODS AND FINDINGS: This community-based, cluster-randomized trial was conducted in four rural districts in Ghana. We randomly allocated 54 community health officers (stratified on district and catchment area distance to a health facility: ≥10 km versus <10 km) to intervention (one injection of oxytocin [10 IU] one minute after birth) and control (no provision of prophylactic oxytocin) arms. Births attended by a community health officer constituted a cluster. Our primary outcome was PPH, using multiple definitions; (PPH-1) blood loss ≥500 mL; (PPH-2) PPH-1 plus women who received early treatment for PPH; and (PPH-3) PPH-2 plus any other women referred to hospital for postpartum bleeding. Unsafe practice is defined as oxytocin use before delivery of the baby. We enrolled 689 and 897 women, respectively, into oxytocin and control arms of the trial from April 2011 to November 2012. In oxytocin and control arms, respectively, PPH-1 rates were 2.6% versus 5.5% (RR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.27-0.88); PPH-2 rates were 3.8% versus 10.8% (RR: 0.35; 95% CI: 0.18-0.63), and PPH-3 rates were similar to those of PPH-2. Compared to women in control clusters, those in the intervention clusters lost 45.1 mL (17.7-72.6) less blood. There were no cases of oxytocin use before delivery of the baby and no major adverse events requiring notification of the institutional review boards. Limitations include an unblinded trial and imbalanced numbers of participants, favoring controls. CONCLUSION: Maternal health care planners can consider adapting this model to extend the use of oxytocin into peripheral settings including, in some contexts, home births. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01108289 Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary