Regulation of hyperoxia-induced social behaviour in Pristionchus pacificus nematodes requires a novel cilia-mediated environmental input.

Social behaviours are frequently utilised for defence and stress avoidance in nature. Both Caenorhabditis elegans and Pristionchus pacificus nematodes display social behaviours including clumping and bordering, to avoid hyperoxic stress conditions. Additionally, both species show natural variation in social behaviours with "social" and "solitary" strains.

Global Sequestration Potential of Increased Organic Carbon in Cropland Soils.

The role of soil organic carbon in global carbon cycles is receiving increasing attention both as a potentially large and uncertain source of CO emissions in response to predicted global temperature rises, and as a natural sink for carbon able to reduce atmospheric CO. There is general agreement that the technical potential for sequestration of carbon in soil is significant, and some consensus on the magnitude of that potential. Croplands worldwide could sequester between 0.

Single-Molecule Sequencing Reveals the Chromosome-Scale Genomic Architecture of the Nematode Model Organism Pristionchus pacificus.

The nematode Pristionchus pacificus is an established model for integrative evolutionary biology and comparative studies with Caenorhabditis elegans. While an existing genome draft facilitated the identification of several genes controlling various developmental processes, its high degree of fragmentation complicated virtually all genomic analyses. Here, we present a de novo genome assembly from single-molecule, long-read sequencing data consisting of 135 P.

Review of lattice results concerning low-energy particle physics: Flavour Lattice Averaging Group (FLAG).

We review lattice results related to pion, kaon, - and -meson physics with the aim of making them easily accessible to the particle-physics community. More specifically, we report on the determination of the light-quark masses, the form factor [Formula: see text], arising in the semileptonic [Formula: see text] transition at zero momentum transfer, as well as the decay constant ratio [Formula: see text] and its consequences for the CKM matrix elements [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. Furthermore, we describe the results obtained on the lattice for some of the low-energy constants of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] Chiral Perturbation Theory.

Heterospin biradicals provide insight into molecular conductance and rectification.

The correlation of electron transfer with molecular conductance (: electron transport through single molecules) by Nitzan and others has contributed to a fundamental understanding of single-molecule electronic materials. When an unsymmetric, dipolar molecule spans two electrodes, the possibility exists for different conductance values at equal, but opposite electrode biases. In the device configuration, these molecules serve as rectifiers of the current and the efficiency of the device is given by the rectification ratio (RR = /).

Covalent Lectin Inhibition and Application in Bacterial Biofilm Imaging.

Biofilm formation by pathogenic bacteria is a hallmark of chronic infections. In many cases, lectins play key roles in establishing biofilms. The pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa often exhibiting various drug resistances employs its lectins LecA and LecB as virulence factors and biofilm building blocks.

Children's psychosocial functioning and parents' quality of life in paediatric short stature: The mediating role of caregiving stress.

Objectives: On the basis of the multidimensional model of the caregiving process, this study aimed (a) to compare the levels of quality of life (QoL) and psychological problems of children with short stature and the levels of caregiving stress and QoL of their parents, between diagnostic, treatment, and current height deviation groups, and (b) to examine the direct and indirect links, via caregiving stress, between children's psychosocial functioning and their parents' QoL.

Method: The sample was collected in 5 European countries and comprised 238 dyads of 8- to 18-year-old children and adolescents with a clinical diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency or idiopathic short stature and one of their parents. The children completed self-report measures of height-related QoL (Quality of Life in Short Stature Youth Core Module) and psychological problems (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire); the parents reported on their own QoL (EUROHIS-QOL-8 Index) and caregiving stress (Quality of Life in Short Stature Youth Effects on Parents subscale).

Universal temporal characteristics and vanishing of multifractality in Barkhausen avalanches.

Barkhausen effect in ferromagnetic materials provides an excellent area for investigating scaling phenomena found in disordered systems exhibiting crackling noise. The critical dynamics is characterized by random pulses or avalanches with scale-invariant properties, power-law distributions, and universal features. However, the traditional Barkhausen avalanches statistics may not be sufficient to fully characterize the complex temporal correlation of the magnetic domain walls dynamics.

QCD Coupling from a Nonperturbative Determination of the Three-Flavor Λ Parameter.

We present a lattice determination of the Λ parameter in three-flavor QCD and the strong coupling at the Z pole mass. Computing the nonperturbative running of the coupling in the range from 0.2 to 70 GeV, and using experimental input values for the masses and decay constants of the pion and the kaon, we obtain Λ_{MS[over ¯]}^{(3)}=341(12)  MeV.

Serotonin Drives Predatory Feeding Behavior via Synchronous Feeding Rhythms in the Nematode .

Feeding behaviors in a wide range of animals are regulated by the neurotransmitter serotonin, although the exact neural circuits and associated mechanism are often unknown. The nematode can kill other nematodes by opening prey cuticles with movable teeth. Previous studies showed that exogenous serotonin treatment induces a predatory-like tooth movement and slower pharyngeal pumping in the absence of prey; however, physiological functions of serotonin during predation and other behaviors in remained completely unknown.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of the pharyngeal gland cells in the predatory nematode Pristionchus pacificus.

Pristionchus pacificus is a model system in evolutionary biology and for comparison to Caenorhabditis elegans. As a necromenic nematode often found in association with scarab beetles, P. pacificus exhibits omnivorous feeding that is characterized by a mouth-form dimorphism, an example of phenotypic plasticity.

Humans and climate change drove the Holocene decline of the brown bear.

The current debate about megafaunal extinctions during the Quaternary focuses on the extent to which they were driven by humans, climate change, or both. These two factors may have interacted in a complex and unexpected manner, leaving the exact pathways to prehistoric extinctions unresolved. Here we quantify, with unprecedented detail, the contribution of humans and climate change to the Holocene decline of the largest living terrestrial carnivore, the brown bear (Ursus arctos), on a continental scale.

Patient-Reported Outcome Measures in Pruritus: A Systematic Review of Measurement Properties.

This review aims to systematically evaluate studies on the measurement properties of patient-reported outcome measures in pruritus, especially for use in clinical trials. Validation studies on instruments were identified based on a PubMed literature search. The consensus-based standards for the selection of health status measurement instruments checklist was used to evaluate the studies' methodological quality, and the consensus-based standards for the selection of health status measurement instruments criteria were used to synthesize the instruments' measurement properties.

The Wound-QoL questionnaire on quality of life in chronic wounds is highly reliable.

The Wound-QoL questionnaire has been tested in a previous study, indicating that the instrument is a reliable and valid measurement for the assessment of HRQoL in chronic wounds. The aim of this study was to examine the test-retest reliability of the Wound-QoL. Patients were asked to complete the Wound-QoL twice within 3-7 days.

Multiparametric monitoring of microbial faecal pollution reveals the dominance of human contamination along the whole Danube River.

The microbial faecal pollution of rivers has wide-ranging impacts on a variety of human activities that rely on appropriate river water quality. Thus, detailed knowledge of the extent and origin of microbial faecal pollution is crucial for watershed management activities to maintain safe water use. In this study, the microbial faecal pollution levels were monitored by standard faecal indicator bacteria (SFIB) along a 2580 km stretch of the Danube, the world's most international river, as well as the Danube's most important tributaries.

Environmental influence on Pristionchus pacificus mouth form through different culture methods.

Environmental cues can impact development to elicit distinct phenotypes in the adult. The consequences of phenotypic plasticity can have profound effects on morphology, life cycle, and behavior to increase the fitness of the organism. The molecular mechanisms governing these interactions are beginning to be elucidated in a few cases, such as social insects.

Experiencing health-related quality of life in paediatric short stature - a cross-cultural analysis of statements from patients and parents.

Objectives: Direct assessment of the patient perspective is necessary to thoroughly understand patients' experiences of disease. We aimed to examine information from children with short stature on their perceived HrQoL within 5 European countries.

Methods: Patients, identified through clinical databases, were approached by their clinicians according to the inclusion criteria regarding a diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency or idiopathic short stature and age requirements.

A loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay for the rapid detection of Enterococcus spp. in water.

Faecal pollution of water and the resulting potential presence of human enteric pathogens is a predominant threat to public health. Microbiological water quality can be assessed by the detection of standard faecal indicator bacteria (SFIB) such as E. coli or certain Enterococcus species.

A Complementary Isothermal Amplification Method to the U.S. EPA Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction Approach for the Detection of Enterococci in Environmental Waters.

We report a novel molecular assay, based on helicase-dependent amplification (HDA), for the detection of enterococci as markers for fecal pollution in water. This isothermal assay targets the same Enterococcus 23S rRNA gene region as the existing quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assays of U.S.

Development and pilot-testing of a condition-specific instrument to assess the quality-of-life in children and adolescents born with esophageal atresia.

The survival rate of children with esophageal atresia has today reached 95%. However, children are at risk of chronic morbidity related to esophageal and respiratory dysfunction, and associated anomalies. This study describes the pilot testing of a condition-specific health-related quality-of-life instrument for children with esophageal atresia in Sweden and Germany, using a patient-derived development approach consistent with international guidelines.

Validation of the Italian Quality of Life in Short Stature Youth (QoLISSY) questionnaire.

Purpose: The Quality of Life in Short Stature Youth (QoLISSY) questionnaire is a disease-specific instrument developed to assess health-related quality of life (HrQoL) in children with short stature. While the original instrument was simultaneously developed in five European countries, this study describes the results of the Italian QoLISSY translation, cultural adaptation, and validation.

Methods: Focus group discussions and a cognitive debriefing process with children (N = 12) diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency or idiopathic short stature and one parent each, as well as parents of younger children (N = 20) were conducted to examine the linguistic and content validity of the Italian version.

Developmental systems of plasticity and trans-generational epigenetic inheritance in nematodes.

Several decades of research provided detailed insight into how genes control development and evolution, whereas recent studies have expanded this purely genetic perspective by presenting strong evidence for environmental and epigenetic influences. We summarize examples of phenotypic plasticity and trans-generational epigenetic inheritance in the nematode model organisms Pristionchus pacificus and Caenorhabditis elegans, which indicate that the response of developmental systems to environmental influences is hardwired into the organismś genome. We argue that genetic programs regulating these organismal-environmental interactions are themselves subject to natural selection.

The evolutionary and phylogeographic history of woolly mammoths: a comprehensive mitogenomic analysis.

Near the end of the Pleistocene epoch, populations of the woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) were distributed across parts of three continents, from western Europe and northern Asia through Beringia to the Atlantic seaboard of North America. Nonetheless, questions about the connectivity and temporal continuity of mammoth populations and species remain unanswered. We use a combination of targeted enrichment and high-throughput sequencing to assemble and interpret a data set of 143 mammoth mitochondrial genomes, sampled from fossils recovered from across their Holarctic range.