Small-scale genetic differentiation in mean flowering time, but not in plasticity, along a geothermal heating gradient.

Genetic differentiation in traits is assumed to frequently occur in response to divergent natural selection. For example, developmental traits might respond to differences in climate. However, little is known about when and at which spatial scales environmental differences lead to genetic differentiation, and to what extent there is genetic differentiation also in trait plasticity.

A transdisciplinary, comparative analysis reveals key risks from Arctic permafrost thaw.

Permafrost thaw poses diverse risks to Arctic environments and livelihoods. Understanding the effects of permafrost thaw is vital for informed policymaking and adaptation efforts. Here, we present the consolidated findings of a risk analysis spanning four study regions: Longyearbyen (Svalbard, Norway), the Avannaata municipality (Greenland), the Beaufort Sea region and the Mackenzie River Delta (Canada) and the Bulunskiy District of the Sakha Republic (Russia).

Management Measures and Trends of Biological Invasions in Europe: A Survey-Based Assessment of Local Managers.

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and nature's contributions to people worldwide. However, the effectiveness of invasive alien species (IAS) management measures and the progress toward achieving biodiversity targets remain uncertain due to limited and nonuniform data availability. Management success is usually assessed at a local level and documented in technical reports, often written in languages other than English, which makes such data notoriously difficult to collect at large geographic scales.

Mental health and sociodemographic influences during COVID-19: Longitudinal findings from Iceland.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced numerous stressors and challenges that have had profound implications for mental health. This study examined the effects of the pandemic on mental health among Icelandic adults (n = 1766), using longitudinal survey data spanning three waves of data collection from 2019 to 2022. Symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress increased from the beginning of the pandemic to the second time point, approximately one year into the pandemic, coinciding with reductions in happiness and social support.

Enhancing prediction of major depressive disorder onset in adolescents: A machine learning approach.

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a prevalent mental health condition that often begins in adolescence, with significant long-term implications. Indicated prevention programs targeting adolescents with mild symptoms have shown efficacy, yet the methods for identifying at-risk individuals need improvement. This study aims to evaluate the utility of Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) in predicting the onset of MDD among non-depressed adolescents, compared to traditional screening methods.

Efficacy of brief behavioral and sleep hygiene education with mindfulness intervention on sleep, social jetlag and mental health in adolescence: a pilot study.

Objectives: Sleep is often compromised in adolescents, affecting their health and quality of life. This pilot-study was conducted to evaluate if implementing brief-behavioral and sleep-hygiene education with mindfulness intervention may positively affect sleep-health in adolescents.

Method: Participants in this community-based non-randomized cohort-study volunteered for intervention (IG)- or control-group (CG).

Impact of Pharmacovigilance Interventions Targeting Fluoroquinolones on Antibiotic Use in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

Purpose: Fluoroquinolones are antibiotics associated with adverse events that prompted the European Medicines Agency to implement risk minimization measures (RMMs) in 2018/19 and 2020. Our aim is to assess the RMMs' impact on antibiotic prescriptions in primary care during 2014-2023.

Methods: We assessed antibiotic prescriptions using CPRD GOLD (the United Kingdom, UK) and PHARMO (the Netherlands, NL).

Breast Morphogenesis: From Normal Development to Cancer.

The human breast gland is composed of branching epithelial ducts that culminate in milk-producing units known as terminal duct lobular units (TDLUs). The epithelial compartment comprises an inner layer of luminal epithelial cells (LEP) and an outer layer of contractile myoepithelial cells (MEP). Both LEP and MEP arise from a common stem cell population.

Proteins Involved in Endothelial Function and Inflammation Are Implicated in Cerebral Small Vessel Disease.

Background: Endothelial dysfunction and inflammation have been implicated in the pathophysiology of cerebral small vessel disease (SVD). However, whether they are causal, and if so which components of the pathways represent potential treatment targets, remains uncertain.

Methods: Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) was used to test the association between the circulating abundance of 996 proteins involved in endothelial dysfunction and inflammation and SVD.

Association between exposure to pyrethroids and chlorpyrifos at age 5 years and IQ at age 7 years among children from the Odense Child Cohort, a prospective birth cohort study.

Background: Over the past decade, the use of organophosphate insecticides including chlorpyrifos has faced increasing restrictions due to health concerns, leading to a rise in use of pyrethroids. Concerns about neurodevelopmental insults following pyrethroids exposure exist, but few studies have examined the long-term effects of childhood exposure to chlorpyrifos and pyrethroids on IQ.

Objective: To investigate the prospective associations between pyrethroids and chlorpyrifos exposure at age 5 years and IQ scores assessed at age 7.

Metabolomics signatures of serotonin reuptake inhibitor (escitalopram), serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (duloxetine) and cognitive-behavioral therapy on key neurotransmitter pathways in major depressive disorder.

Metabolomics provides powerful tools that can inform about heterogeneity in disease and response to treatments. In this exploratory study, we employed an electrochemistry-based targeted metabolomics platform to assess the metabolic effects of three randomly-assigned treatments: escitalopram, duloxetine, and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in 163 treatment-naïve outpatients with major depressive disorder. Serum samples from baseline and 12 weeks post-treatment were analyzed using targeted liquid chromatography-electrochemistry for metabolites related to tryptophan, tyrosine metabolism and related pathways.

Bilateral hip exoskeleton assistance enables faster walking in individuals with chronic stroke-related gait impairments.

Millions of individuals surviving a stroke have lifelong gait impairments that reduce their personal independence and quality of life. Reduced walking speed is one of the major problems limiting community mobility and reintegration. Previous studies have shown positive effect of robot-assisted gait training utilizing hip exoskeletons for individuals with gait impairments due to a stroke, leading to increased walking speed in post-treatment compared to pre-treatment assessments.

Attribute Conditioning is insensitive to cue competition and is not predicted by the Big Five Personality Traits.

When a neutral stimulus is paired with a stimulus denoting an attribute, the neutral stimulus inherits that attribute (i.e., Attribute Conditioning; AC).

Heparin-binding of the human chitinase-like protein YKL-40 is allosterically modified by chitin oligosaccharides.

The chitinase-like protein YKL-40 (CHI3L1) has been implicated in the pathophysiology of inflammation and cancer. Recent studies highlight the growing interest in targeting and blocking the activity of YKL-40 to treat cancer. Some of those targeting-strategies have been developed to directly block the heparin-affinity of YKL-40 with promising results.

Definition and developmental goals for Nordic emergency medicine.

Although Emergency Medicine is now globally an established specialty, the Nordic countries have been relatively slow to implement it into their health care systems. To facilitate the development of EM in the Nordic area, a working group was formed with representation from all national EM societies; DASEM (Danish Society for Emergency Medicine), FiSEM (Finnish Society of Emergency Medicine), ISEM (Icelandic Society for Emergency Medicine), NCEM (Norwegian College of Emergency Medicine), and SWESEM (Swedish Society for Emergency Medicine). This group was tasked with creating a Nordic EM manifesto-to create a definition and developmental goals for Nordic Emergency Medicine.

Rare variant associations with birth weight identify genes involved in adipose tissue regulation, placental function and insulin-like growth factor signalling.

Investigating the genetic factors influencing human birth weight may lead to biological insights into fetal growth and long-term health. We report analyses of rare variants that impact birth weight when carried by either fetus or mother, using whole exome sequencing data in up to 234,675 participants. Rare protein-truncating and deleterious missense variants are collapsed to perform gene burden tests.

Riparian Soil Heavy Metal Contamination and Pollution Assessment and Management Planning Integrating Multiple Indices, Statistical and Geospatial Approaches.

This research assesses heavy metal contamination within the riparian zone of the Danro River, a tributary of the Ganges River basin in India, particularly impacted by sand mining activities. The study conducted analyses on major and trace elements in soil samples, focusing on those identified as ecologically hazardous by the Water Framework Directive of India. Utilizing a combination of indices (Enrichment Factor, Pollution Load Index, and Index of geo-accumulation) and statistical techniques such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA), the investigation aimed to evaluate contamination severity, ecological risks, and pollution sources.

Optimizing automated photo identification for population assessments.

Several legal acts mandate that management agencies regularly assess biological populations. For species with distinct markings, these assessments can be conducted noninvasively via capture-recapture and photographic identification (photo-ID), which involves processing considerable quantities of photographic data. To ease this burden, agencies increasingly rely on automated identification (ID) algorithms.

The potential for glacial flour to impact soil fertility, crop yield and nutrition in mountain regions.

Novel sustainable agricultural strategies that enhance soil nutrients and human nutrition are crucial for meeting global food production needs. Here, we evaluate the potential of "glacial flour," a naturally crushed rock produced by glaciers known to be rich in nutrients (P, K, and micronutrients) needed for plant growth. Our proof-of-concept study, investigated soybean ( var.

The 2021 Baby Boom in Iceland: Exploring the Role of a Parental Leave Reform and the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Total Fertility Rate in Iceland rose unexpectedly from 1.79 to 1.90.

Influence of Menstrual Phase and Symptoms on Sleep Before and After Matches for Professional Footballers.

This study investigated the association of menstrual cycle phase and symptoms with objective and subjective sleep measures from professional footballers before and after matches. Twenty-three non-hormonal contraceptive-using professional footballers (from four clubs) were monitored for up to four menstrual cycles during a domestic league season. Menstrual phases (menstruation, mid-late follicular, luteal) were determined using calendar counting and urinary hormone tests (luteinizing hormone and pregnandiol-3-glucuronide).

ColMA-based bioprinted 3D scaffold allowed to study tenogenic events in human tendon stem cells.

The advent of bioprinting has enabled the creation of precise three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures suitable for biomimetic in vitro models. In this study, we developed a novel protocol for 3D printing methacrylated collagen (ColMa, or PhotoCol®) combined with tendon stem/progenitor cells (hTSPCs) derived from human tendon explants. Although pure ColMa has not previously been proposed as a printable hydrogel, this paper outlines a robust and highly reproducible pipeline for bioprinting this material.

Genetic diversity and intercontinental dispersal of temperate and subarctic populations of Dibothriocephalus dendriticus (Cestoda; Diphyllobothriidea), a causative agent of dibothriocephalosis.

The diphyllobothriid tapeworm Dibothriocephalus dendriticus, one of the causative agents of the fish-borne zoonosis dibothriocephalosis, is mainly distributed in the Arctic/subarctic and temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere (Europe, North America, and Asia), but also in the southern cone region of South America (Patagonia). The genetic structure and gene flow among 589 individuals of D. dendriticus, representing 20 populations, were studied using the mitochondrial cox1 gene as the first choice marker and 10 polymorphic nuclear microsatellite loci as a dominant molecular tool.

Combining Postural Sway Parameters and Machine Learning to Assess Biomechanical Risk Associated with Load-Lifting Activities.

: Long-term work-related musculoskeletal disorders are predominantly influenced by factors such as the duration, intensity, and repetitive nature of load lifting. Although traditional ergonomic assessment tools can be effective, they are often challenging and complex to apply due to the absence of a streamlined, standardized framework. Recently, integrating wearable sensors with artificial intelligence has emerged as a promising approach to effectively monitor and mitigate biomechanical risks.