The impact of experimental impact pile driving on oxygen uptake in black seabream and plaice

This is the final version of the article. Available from Acoustical Society of America via the DOI in this record.Fourth International Conference on the Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life, Dublin, Ireland, 10-16 July 2016Anthropogenic noise is a recognized global pollutant that could potentially impact many organisms, including fishes. One of the acoustic sources producing high impulsive noise and vibration is pile driving. However, the potential impacts of real pile driving on fish species has received little attention, mainly due to the logistical challenges involved. Here, we investigated the impact of pile driving on the oxygen uptake (a secondary stress response) of black seabream Spondyliosoma cantharus and European plaice Pleuronectes platessa using an experimental pile driver setup in a flooded ship-building dock. Each individual fish was tested in ambient and pile driving conditions using a counterbalanced paired design to control for potential order effects. During pile driving, black seabream increased oxygen uptake compared to the ambient control condition suggesting higher stress levels. Plaice did not show differences in oxygen consumption between the pile driving and ambient treatment. These results show the impact of pile driving on secondary stress responses in fish, highlight species-specific differences concerning acoustical impacts, and showcase the possibility of carrying out large-scale semi-field acoustic experiments.Thanks also to E.ON, NERC MREKE and Marine Scotland for financial support

Pharmacological strategies to reduce anthracycline-associated cardiotoxicity in cancer patients.

INTRODUCTION: Anthracycline chemotherapeutic agents are widely used in the treatment of hematological and solid tumors, working principally through DNA intercalation and topoisomerase II inhibition. However, they are also well known to have cardiotoxic sequelae, commonly denoted as a reduction in ejection fraction. Drug-associated cardiotoxicity remains a significant limiting factor in the use of anthracyclines. AREAS COVERED: In this review, we explore the potential mechanisms of anthracycline-associated cardiotoxicity, identifying high-risk cohorts and approaches to cardiovascular monitoring. The mechanisms through which cardiotoxicity occurs are complex and diverse, ultimately leading to increased oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and subsequent cellular apoptosis. Many of the cardiotoxic effects of anthracyclines exhibit a dose-dependent cumulative relationship and are more apparent in patients with previously existing cardiovascular risk factors. Long-term cardiovascular monitoring and optimization of risk factors, prior to commencing treatment as well as beyond the time of treatment, is therefore essential. EXPERT OPINION: We discuss some of the pharmacological strategies proposed to mitigate anthracycline-associated cardiotoxicity as well as prevention strategies to reduce the burden of coexisting cardiovascular risk factors. We highlight methods of early detection of patient cohorts who are at increased risk of developing anthracycline-associated cardiotoxicity and identify potential avenues for further research

A tool to predict the impact of anthropogenic noise on fish

Anthropogenic (man-made) noise is a global problem in aquatic and terrestrial environments. In the shallow seas around many countries, including the UK, large windfarms are being constructed using pile driving to create a solid base for the turbines. Offshore pile driving creates pulsating noises and vibrations of very high intensities, which has been shown to be deleterious to a variety of aquatic species. Using a hydrodynamic model that predicts the propagation of underwater noise while taking into account bathymetry, tidal movements and currents, we integrated a numerical behavioural tool that models fish behaviour in response to noise. Using agent based modelling, scientifically published data and parameters obtained from carefully controlled experiments, we modelled the impact of noise on European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) as they encountered pile driving during migration from the ocean to a spawning site close to the shore. Taking our empirical experiments into account - which showed a negative impact of noise on feeding behaviour and increased oxygen consumption - the model predicts that the fish took significantly longer to arrive at the spawning site. This effect could have important implications at a population level, as fish would use more energy to reach the site and might desynchronize spawning behaviour, which in turn would influence larval survival and life history processes that reduce fitness. This tool not only shows the value of using numerical models to predict animal behaviour in a complex environment, but also highlights the merit of using such models to predict anthropogenic impacts that would otherwise be difficult or too costly to obtain.NERCHR Wallingfor

The detection of the imprint of filaments on cosmic microwave background lensing

Galaxy redshift surveys, such as 2dF, SDSS, 6df, GAMA and VIPERS, have shown that the spatial distribution of matter forms a rich web, known as the cosmic web. The majority of galaxy survey analyses measure the amplitude of galaxy clustering as a function of scale, ignoring information beyond a small number of summary statistics. Since the matter density field becomes highly non-Gaussian as structure evolves under gravity, we expect other statistical descriptions of the field to provide us with additional information. One way to study the non-Gaussianity is to study filaments, which evolve non-linearly from the initial density fluctuations produced in the primordial Universe. In our study, we report the first detection of CMB (Cosmic Microwave Background) lensing by filaments and we apply a null test to confirm our detection. Furthermore, we propose a phenomenological model to interpret the detected signal and we measure how filaments trace the matter distribution on large scales through filament bias, which we measure to be around 1.5. Our study provides a new scope to understand the environmental dependence of galaxy formation. In the future, the joint analysis of lensing and Sunyaev-Zel'dovich observations might reveal the properties of `missing baryons', the vast majority of the gas which resides in the intergalactic medium and has so far evaded most observations

Abnormal expression of p27kip1 protein in levator ani muscle of aging women with pelvic floor disorders – a relationship to the cellular differentiation and degeneration

BACKGROUND: Pelvic floor disorders affect almost 50% of aging women. An important role in the pelvic floor support belongs to the levator ani muscle. The p27/kip1 (p27) protein, multifunctional cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor, shows changing expression in differentiating skeletal muscle cells during development, and relatively high levels of p27 RNA were detected in the normal human skeletal muscles. METHODS: Biopsy samples of levator ani muscle were obtained from 22 symptomatic patients with stress urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, and overlaps (age range 38–74), and nine asymptomatic women (age 31–49). Cryostat sections were investigated for p27 protein expression and type I (slow twitch) and type II (fast twitch) fibers. RESULTS: All fibers exhibited strong plasma membrane (and nuclear) p27 protein expression. cytoplasmic p27 expression was virtually absent in asymptomatic women. In perimenopausal symptomatic patients (ages 38–55), muscle fibers showed hypertrophy and moderate cytoplasmic p27 staining accompanied by diminution of type II fibers. Older symptomatic patients (ages 57–74) showed cytoplasmic p27 overexpression accompanied by shrinking, cytoplasmic vacuolization and fragmentation of muscle cells. The plasma membrane and cytoplasmic p27 expression was not unique to the muscle cells. Under certain circumstances, it was also detected in other cell types (epithelium of ectocervix and luteal cells). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report on the unusual (plasma membrane and cytoplasmic) expression of p27 protein in normal and abnormal human striated muscle cells in vivo. Our data indicate that pelvic floor disorders are in perimenopausal patients associated with an appearance of moderate cytoplasmic p27 expression, accompanying hypertrophy and transition of type II into type I fibers. The patients in advanced postmenopause show shrinking and fragmentation of muscle fibers associated with strong cytoplasmic p27 expression

Evaluation of mobile learning: Students' experiences in a new rural-based medical school

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Mobile learning (ML) is an emerging educational method with success dependent on many factors including the ML device, physical infrastructure and user characteristics. At Gippsland Medical School (GMS), students are given a laptop at the commencement of their four-year degree. We evaluated the educational impact of the ML program from students' perspectives.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Questionnaires and individual interviews explored students' experiences of ML. All students were invited to complete questionnaires. Convenience sampling was used for interviews. Quantitative data was entered to SPSS 17.0 and descriptive statistics computed. Free text comments from questionnaires and transcriptions of interviews were thematically analysed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fifty students completed the questionnaire (response rate 88%). Six students participated in interviews. More than half the students owned a laptop prior to commencing studies, would recommend the laptop and took the laptop to GMS daily. Modal daily use of laptops was four hours. Most frequent use was for access to the internet and email while the most frequently used applications were Microsoft Word and PowerPoint. Students appreciated the laptops for several reasons. The reduced financial burden was valued. Students were largely satisfied with the laptop specifications. Design elements of teaching spaces limited functionality. Although students valued aspects of the virtual learning environment (VLE), they also made many suggestions for improvement.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Students reported many educational benefits from school provision of laptops. In particular, the quick and easy access to electronic educational resources as and when they were needed. Improved design of physical facilities would enhance laptop use together with a more logical layout of the VLE, new computer-based resources and activities promoting interaction.</p

Structure of the hDmc1-ssDNA filament reveals the principles of its architecture

In eukaryotes, meiotic recombination is a major source of genetic diversity, but its defects in humans lead to abnormalities such as Down's, Klinefelter's and other syndromes. Human Dmc1 (hDmc1), a RecA/Rad51 homologue, is a recombinase that plays a crucial role in faithful chromosome segregation during meiosis. The initial step of homologous recombination occurs when hDmc1 forms a filament on single-stranded (ss) DNA. However the structure of this presynaptic complex filament for hDmc1 remains unknown. To compare hDmc1-ssDNA complexes to those known for the RecA/Rad51 family we have obtained electron microscopy (EM) structures of hDmc1-ssDNA nucleoprotein filaments using single particle approach. The EM maps were analysed by docking crystal structures of Dmc1, Rad51, RadA, RecA and DNA. To fully characterise hDmc1-DNA complexes we have analysed their organisation in the presence of Ca2+, Mg2+, ATP, AMP-PNP, ssDNA and dsDNA. The 3D EM structures of the hDmc1-ssDNA filaments allowed us to elucidate the principles of their internal architecture. Similar to the RecA/Rad51 family, hDmc1 forms helical filaments on ssDNA in two states: extended (active) and compressed (inactive). However, in contrast to the RecA/Rad51 family, and the recently reported structure of hDmc1-double stranded (ds) DNA nucleoprotein filaments, the extended (active) state of the hDmc1 filament formed on ssDNA has nine protomers per helical turn, instead of the conventional six, resulting in one protomer covering two nucleotides instead of three. The control reconstruction of the hDmc1-dsDNA filament revealed 6.4 protein subunits per helical turn indicating that the filament organisation varies depending on the DNA templates. Our structural analysis has also revealed that the N-terminal domain of hDmc1 accomplishes its important role in complex formation through domain swapping between adjacent protomers, thus providing a mechanistic basis for coordinated action of hDmc1 protomers during meiotic recombination

Large Scale Structure of the Universe

Galaxies are not uniformly distributed in space. On large scales the Universe displays coherent structure, with galaxies residing in groups and clusters on scales of ~1-3 Mpc/h, which lie at the intersections of long filaments of galaxies that are >10 Mpc/h in length. Vast regions of relatively empty space, known as voids, contain very few galaxies and span the volume in between these structures. This observed large scale structure depends both on cosmological parameters and on the formation and evolution of galaxies. Using the two-point correlation function, one can trace the dependence of large scale structure on galaxy properties such as luminosity, color, stellar mass, and track its evolution with redshift. Comparison of the observed galaxy clustering signatures with dark matter simulations allows one to model and understand the clustering of galaxies and their formation and evolution within their parent dark matter halos. Clustering measurements can determine the parent dark matter halo mass of a given galaxy population, connect observed galaxy populations at different epochs, and constrain cosmological parameters and galaxy evolution models. This chapter describes the methods used to measure the two-point correlation function in both redshift and real space, presents the current results of how the clustering amplitude depends on various galaxy properties, and discusses quantitative measurements of the structures of voids and filaments. The interpretation of these results with current theoretical models is also presented.Comment: Invited contribution to be published in Vol. 8 of book "Planets, Stars, and Stellar Systems", Springer, series editor T. D. Oswalt, volume editor W. C. Keel, v2 includes additional references, updated to match published versio

Integrating personality research and animal contest theory: aggressiveness in the green swordtail <i>Xiphophorus helleri</i>

&lt;p&gt;Aggression occurs when individuals compete over limiting resources. While theoretical studies have long placed a strong emphasis on context-specificity of aggression, there is increasing recognition that consistent behavioural differences exist among individuals, and that aggressiveness may be an important component of individual personality. Though empirical studies tend to focus on one aspect or the other, we suggest there is merit in modelling both within-and among-individual variation in agonistic behaviour simultaneously. Here, we demonstrate how this can be achieved using multivariate linear mixed effect models. Using data from repeated mirror trials and dyadic interactions of male green swordtails, &lt;i&gt;Xiphophorus helleri&lt;/i&gt;, we show repeatable components of (co)variation in a suite of agonistic behaviour that is broadly consistent with a major axis of variation in aggressiveness. We also show that observed focal behaviour is dependent on opponent effects, which can themselves be repeatable but were more generally found to be context specific. In particular, our models show that within-individual variation in agonistic behaviour is explained, at least in part, by the relative size of a live opponent as predicted by contest theory. Finally, we suggest several additional applications of the multivariate models demonstrated here. These include testing the recently queried functional equivalence of alternative experimental approaches, (e. g., mirror trials, dyadic interaction tests) for assaying individual aggressiveness.&lt;/p&gt