Antarctic Geothermal Soils Exhibit an Absence of Regional Habitat Generalist Microorganisms.

Active geothermal systems are relatively rare in Antarctica and represent metaphorical islands ideal to study microbial dispersal. In this study, we tested the macro-ecological concept that high dispersal rates result in communities being dominated by either habitat generalists or specialists by investigating the microbial communities on four geographically separated geothermal sites on three Antarctic volcanoes (Mts. Erebus, Melbourne, and Rittman).

Antidiabetic agent use and clinical outcomes in patients with diabetes hospitalized for COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: The effect of antidiabetic agents on mortality outcomes is unclear for individuals with diabetes mellitus (DM) who are hospitalized for COVID-19.

Purpose: To examine the relationship between antidiabetic agent use and clinical outcomes in individuals with DM hospitalized for COVID-19.

Methods: A systematic review of the literature (2020-2024) was performed across five databases.

Nutritional niches of potentially endemic, facultatively anaerobic heterotrophs from an isolated Antarctic terrestrial hydrothermal refugium elucidated through metagenomics.

Background: Tramway Ridge, a geothermal Antarctic Specially Protected Area (elevation 3340 m) located near the summit of Mount Erebus, is home to a unique community composed of cosmopolitan surface-associated micro-organisms and abundant, poorly understood subsurface-associated microorganisms. Here, we use shotgun metagenomics to compare the functional capabilities of this community to those found elsewhere on Earth and to infer in situ diversity and metabolic capabilities of abundant subsurface taxa.

Results: We found that the functional potential in this community is most similar to that found in terrestrial hydrothermal environments (hot springs, sediments) and that the two dominant organisms in the subsurface carry high rates of in situ diversity which was taken as evidence of potential endemicity.

Assessing Technical Inefficiency in Ecosystem Service Provision from an Input Perspective in the Cross Timbers region, United States.

We modeled the efficiency of ecosystem service provision-specifically timber production, carbon sequestration, and water yield-in the Cross Timbers region of the United States using stochastic frontier analysis from an input perspective. Inputs considered included natural capital and control variables such as temperature, precipitation, soil moisture, and natural disturbances, among others, that impact ecosystem service production. Inefficiency was modeled as a function of factors such as ownership, forest productivity, and natural disturbances.

Unexpected Delayed Incursion of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 (Clade 2.3.4.4b) Into the Antarctic Region.

The current highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 panzootic is having substantial impacts on wild birds and marine mammals. Following major and widespread outbreaks in South America, an incursion to Antarctica occurred late in the austral summer of 2023/2024 and was confined to the region of the Antarctic Peninsula. To infer potential underlying processes, we compiled H5N1 surveillance data from Antarctica and sub-Antarctic Islands prior to the first confirmed cases.