The Development of DNA Markers to Resolve Uncertainties of Seabird Bycatch Identification From Longline Fisheries in Australian Waters.

Incidental mortality in fisheries is a major driver of population declines for albatrosses and petrels globally. However, accurate identification of species can be difficult due to the poor condition of bycaught birds and/or visual similarities between closely related species. We assessed three genetic markers for their ability to distinguish the 36 albatross and petrel species listed in Annex 1 to the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) and in Australia's Threat Abatement Plan (TAP) for the bycatch of seabirds during oceanic longline fishing operations.

Multinational evaluation of genetic diversity indicators for the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Under the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, 196 Parties committed to reporting the status of genetic diversity for all species. To facilitate reporting, three genetic diversity indicators were developed, two of which focus on processes contributing to genetic diversity conservation: maintaining genetically distinct populations and ensuring populations are large enough to maintain genetic diversity. The major advantage of these indicators is that they can be estimated with or without DNA-based data.

Host gene expression signatures to identify infection type and organ dysfunction in children evaluated for sepsis: a multicentre cohort study.

Background: Sepsis is defined as dysregulated host response to infection that leads to life-threatening organ dysfunction. Biomarkers characterising the dysregulated host response in sepsis are lacking. We aimed to develop host gene expression signatures to predict organ dysfunction in children with bacterial or viral infection.

Genetic mixing in conservation translocations increases diversity of a keystone threatened species, Bettongia lesueur.

Translocation programmes are increasingly being informed by genetic data to monitor and enhance conservation outcomes for both natural and established populations. These data provide a window into contemporary patterns of genetic diversity, structure and relatedness that can guide managers in how to best source animals for their translocation programmes. The inclusion of historical samples, where possible, strengthens monitoring by allowing assessment of changes in genetic diversity over time and by providing a benchmark for future improvements in diversity via management practices.

New Guinea uplift opens ecological opportunity across a continent.

Sahul unites the world's largest and highest tropical island and the oldest and most arid continent on the backdrop of dynamic environmental conditions. Massive geological uplift in New Guinea is predicted to have acted as a species pump from the late Miocene onward, but the impact of this process on biogeography and diversification remains untested across Sahul as a whole. To address this, we reconstruct the assembly of a recent and diverse radiation of rodents (Murinae: Hydromyini) spanning New Guinea, Australia, and oceanic islands.

Population genomics of a predatory mammal reveals patterns of decline and impacts of exposure to toxic toads.

Mammal declines across northern Australia are one of the major biodiversity loss events occurring globally. There has been no regional assessment of the implications of these species declines for genomic diversity. To address this, we conducted a species-wide assessment of genomic diversity in the northern quoll (Dasyurus hallucatus), an Endangered marsupial carnivore.

Crisis responses, opportunity, and public authority during Covid-19's first wave in Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan.

Discussions on African responses to Covid-19 have focused on the state and its international backers. Far less is known about a wider range of public authorities, including chiefs, humanitarians, criminal gangs, and armed groups. This paper investigates how the pandemic provided opportunities for claims to and contests over power in Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan.

Global Commitments to Conserving and Monitoring Genetic Diversity Are Now Necessary and Feasible.

Global conservation policy and action have largely neglected protecting and monitoring genetic diversity-one of the three main pillars of biodiversity. Genetic diversity (diversity within species) underlies species' adaptation and survival, ecosystem resilience, and societal innovation. The low priority given to genetic diversity has largely been due to knowledge gaps in key areas, including the importance of genetic diversity and the trends in genetic diversity change; the perceived high expense and low availability and the scattered nature of genetic data; and complicated concepts and information that are inaccessible to policymakers.

Museum genomics reveals the rapid decline and extinction of Australian rodents since European settlement.

Australia has the highest historically recorded rate of mammalian extinction in the world, with 34 terrestrial species declared extinct since European colonization in 1788. Among Australian mammals, rodents have been the most severely affected by these recent extinctions; however, given a sparse historical record, the scale and timing of their decline remain unresolved. Using museum specimens up to 184 y old, we generate genomic-scale data from across the entire assemblage of Australian hydromyine rodents (i.

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Mobile Phone App Intervention for Coping With Cancer as a Young Adult: Pilot Trial and Thematic Analysis.

Background: Many young adult patients do not receive adequate psychosocial services to help them cope with cancer.

Objective: This study aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of a smartphone app (iaya) intervention that was designed to create an engaged community of young adult patients and help them learn emotional coping skills.

Methods: For this single-group pilot trial, 25 young adult patients aged 18-39 years who were receiving active cancer treatment were asked to use the iaya app for 12 weeks.

Multicenter observational study evaluating the impact of platelet transport bags on product wastage.

Background: Platelets are the most commonly discarded blood product in Canada, with the most common cause of in-date product loss being improper storage. Transport containers to maintain temperature and extend acceptable return time may represent a method to reduce wastage. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a validated Platelet Transport Bag (PTB) on platelet wastage.

Simulation Innovation: A Novel Simulation Guide for Building Community Simulation Capacity in Pandemic Preparedness.

The coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory distress syndrome coronavirus 2, has spread globally and requires effective preparedness within healthcare institutions. The British Columbia Simulation Network COVID-19 Simulation Guide was created to disseminate information throughout the province of British Columbia, Canada, and to allow simulation educators, from novice to expert, to participate in COVID-19 simulations. As of July 15, 2020, the guide had been downloaded 465 times from the British Columbia Simulation Network website, with downloads in 41 countries around the world.

Taxonomy and conservation of grassland earless dragons: new species and an assessment of the first possible extinction of a reptile on mainland Australia.

Taxonomic research is of fundamental importance in conservation management of threatened species, providing an understanding of species diversity on which management plans are based. The grassland earless dragon lizards (Agamidae: ) of southeastern Australia have long been of conservation concern but there have been ongoing taxonomic uncertainties. We provide a comprehensive taxonomic review of this group, integrating multiple lines of evidence, including phylogeography (mtDNA), phylogenomics (SNPs), external morphology and micro X-ray CT scans.

Functional CT assessment of extravascular contrast distribution volume and myocardial perfusion in acute myocardial infarction.

Purpose: In a pig model of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), we validated a functional computed tomography (CT) technique for concomitant assessment of myocardial edema and ischemia through extravscualar contrast distribution volume (ECDV) and myocardial perfusion (MP) measurements from a single dynamic imaging session using a single contrast bolus injection.

Methods: In seven pigs, balloon catheter was used to occlude the distal left anterior descending artery for one hour followed by reperfusion. CT and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging studies were acquired on 3 days and 12 ± 3 day post ischemic insult.

Detecting rare carnivores using scats: Implications for monitoring a fox incursion into Tasmania.

The ability to detect the incursion of an invasive species or destroy the last individuals during an eradication program are some of the most difficult aspects of invasive species management. The presence of foxes in Tasmania is a contentious issue with recent structured monitoring efforts, involving collection of carnivore scats and testing for fox DNA, failing to detect any evidence of foxes. Understanding the likelihood that monitoring efforts would detect fox presence, given at least one is present, is therefore critical for understanding the role of scat monitoring for informing the response to an incursion.

A single mini-barcode test to screen for Australian mammalian predators from environmental samples.

Identification of species from trace samples is now possible through the comparison of diagnostic DNA fragments against reference DNA sequence databases. DNA detection of animals from non-invasive samples, such as predator faeces (scats) that contain traces of DNA from their species of origin, has proved to be a valuable tool for the management of elusive wildlife. However, application of this approach can be limited by the availability of appropriate genetic markers.