Experimental support for partial compensation, not matched, partner response rules in blue tits.

Outcomes of theoretical models on conflict resolution between investing partners in bi-parental care systems typically predict "partial compensation" or "matched" response rules, depending on underlying assumptions. Further, although experimental tests in birds suggest that care levels by pair members are largely associated with partial compensation responses, this outcome partly depends on the type of experiment used and its effects on model assumptions. To elucidate support for both the underlying assumptions and predictions of models predicting partner compensation versus matching, we performed temporary, bi-directional brood size manipulations during late nestling provisioning in blue tits () in the French Pyrenees.

Source-specific bias correction of US background and anthropogenic ozone modeled in CMAQ.

United States (US) background ozone (O) is the counterfactual O that would exist with zero US anthropogenic emissions. Estimates of US background O typically come from chemical transport models (CTMs), but different models vary in their estimates of both background and total O. Here, a measurement-model data fusion approach is used to estimate CTM biases in US anthropogenic O and multiple US background O sources, including natural emissions, long-range international emissions, short-range international emissions from Canada and Mexico, and stratospheric O.

Ecological and demographic drivers of kin-directed cooperation in a social bird: Insights from a long-term study.

The evolution of sociality is one of the major evolutionary transitions in the history of life and a key step in this transition is the occurrence of kin associations. Yet, the question of what demographic processes and environmental factors generate kin-structured populations and drive kin-directed cooperation remains open. In this review, we synthesise 30 years of studies of the long-tailed tit Aegithalos caudatus, which has a kin-selected cooperative breeding system with redirected help: failed breeders may help to raise offspring of conspecifics, typically relatives, breeding nearby.

Secreted small RNAs of are biomarkers for diagnosis of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis.

Rapid and accurate diagnostics are needed to effectively detect and treat primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) caused by (). Delayed diagnosis and similarities to other causes of meningitis contribute to a case mortality rate of >97%. Thus, there is an unmet medical need for a non-invasive liquid biopsy diagnostic method.

Computational design of highly signalling-active membrane receptors through solvent-mediated allosteric networks.

Protein catalysis and allostery require the atomic-level orchestration and motion of residues and ligand, solvent and protein effector molecules. However, the ability to design protein activity through precise protein-solvent cooperative interactions has not yet been demonstrated. Here we report the design of 14 membrane receptors that catalyse G protein nucleotide exchange through diverse engineered allosteric pathways mediated by cooperative networks of intraprotein, protein-ligand and -solvent molecule interactions.