Family Associations in a Breeding Colony of Critically Endangered Hooded Vulture () in the Lowveld of South Africa.

Numbers of Critically Endangered Hooded Vultures ( Temminck 1823) are declining across their distribution. The range-edge population in South Africa is one of the smallest populations with only 100-200 mature individuals. In South Africa, Hooded Vultures nest solitarily in loose colonies (mean distance between nests 0.

Water sorption studies with mesoporous multivariate monoliths based on UiO-66.

Hierarchical linker thermolysis has been used to enhance the porosity of monolithic UiO-66-based metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) containing 30 wt% 2-aminoterephthalic acid (BDC-NH) linker. In this multivariate ( mixed-linker) MOF, the thermolabile BDC-NH linker decomposed at ∼350 °C, inducing mesopore formation. The nitrogen sorption of these monolithic MOFs was probed, and an increase in gas uptake of more than 200 cm g was observed after activation by heating, together with an increase in pore volume and mean pore width, indicating the creation of mesopores.

Retro-Cope elimination of cyclic alkynes: reactivity trends and rational design of next-generation bioorthogonal reagents.

The retro-Cope elimination reaction between dimethylhydroxylamine (DMHA) and various cyclic alkynes has been quantum chemically explored using DFT at ZORA-BP86/TZ2P. The purpose of this study is to understand the role of the following three unique activation modes on the overall reactivity, that is (i) additional cycloalkyne predistortion fused cycles, (ii) exocyclic heteroatom substitution on the cycloalkyne, and (iii) endocyclic heteroatom substitution on the cycloalkyne. Trends in reactivity are analyzed and explained by using the activation strain model (ASM) of chemical reactivity.

The effect of terrain on the fine-scale genetic diversity of sub-Antarctic Collembola: A landscape genetics approach.

Biodiversity patterns are shaped by the interplay between geodiversity and organismal characteristics. Superimposing genetic structure onto landscape heterogeneity (i.e.

Recruiting a prospective community cohort to study Alzheimer's disease and structural and social determinants of health among adults racialized as Black: The ARCHES cohort.

Introduction: This ongoing, prospective study examines the effectiveness of methods used to successfully recruit and retain 238 Black older adults in a longitudinal, observational Alzheimer's disease (AD) study.

Methods: Recruitment strategies included traditional media, established research registries, speaking engagements, community events, and snowball sampling. Participants were asked to complete an annual office testing session, blood-based biomarker collection, optional one-time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, and community workshop.

Revisiting the type material of two African Diplozoinae (Diplozoidae: Monogenea), with remarks on morphology, systematics and diplozoid specificity.

The morphological characterisation of Diplozoidae spp. is highly reliant on the details of the sclerotised components of the hooks and clamps in the haptor. Only six species of (Diplozoinae) have been described from Africa, four of which have adequate morphological and even comparative ITS2 rDNA data available.

An outsider on the Antarctic Peninsula: A new record of the non-native moth (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae).

We report the first record of the microlepidopteran beyond the South Shetland Islands at the Chilean Yelcho scientific station (64°52'33.1428″ S; 63°35'1.9572″ W), Doumer Island, close to the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.

Nature and strength of group-14 A-A' bonds.

We have quantum chemically investigated the nature and stability of C-C and Si-Si bonds in RA-AR (A = C, Si; R = H, Me, MePh, MePh, Ph, -Bu) using density functional theory (DFT). Systematic increase of steric bulk of the substituents R has opposite effects on C-C and Si-Si bonds: the former becomes weaker whereas the latter becomes stronger. Only upon going further, from R = Ph to the bulkiest R = -Bu, the RSi-SiR bond begins to weaken.

Blueshift in Trifurcated Hydrogen Bonds: A Tradeoff between Tetrel Bonding and Steric Repulsion.

The front cover artwork is provided by the TheoCheM group at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The image shows how, in X •••H C-Y complexes, the Lewis base X tetrel-binds to the central C while sterically pushing the H atoms towards C; hence, the compression and blueshift of the H-C bonds. Read the full text of the Research Article at 10.

Blueshift in Trifurcated Hydrogen Bonds: A Tradeoff between Tetrel Bonding and Steric Repulsion.

We have quantum chemically investigated the origin of the atypical blueshift of the H-C bond stretching frequency in the hydrogen-bonded complex X •••H C-Y (X, Y=F, Cl, Br, I), as compared to the corresponding redshift occurring in Cl •••H N and Cl •••H C-H, using relativistic density functional theory (DFT) at ZORA-BLYP-D3(BJ)/QZ4P. Previously, this blueshift was attributed, among others, to the contraction of the H-C bonds as the H C moiety becomes less pyramidal. Herein, we provide quantitative evidence that, instead, the blueshift arises from a direct and strong X •••C interaction of the HOMO of A with the backside lobe on carbon of the low-lying C-Y antibonding σ* LUMO of the H C-Y fragment.

First record of the introduced ladybird beetle, Linnaeus (1758), on South Georgia (sub-Antarctic).

Biological invasions represent a growing threat to islands and their biodiversity across the world. The isolated sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia in the South Atlantic Ocean is a highly protected area that relies on effective biosecurity including prevention, surveillance and eradication to limit the risk of biological invasions. Based on an opportunistic field discovery, we provide the first report of an introduced ladybird beetle on South Georgia.

Mining the chemical diversity of the hemp seed ( L.) metabolome: discovery of a new molecular family widely distributed across hemp.

Hemp ( L.) is a widely researched industrial crop with a variety of applications in the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, cosmetic, textile, and materials industries. Although many of these applications are related to its chemical composition, the chemical diversity of the hemp metabolome has not been explored in detail and new metabolites with unknown properties are likely to be discovered.

Insertion of CO and CS into Bi-N bonds enables catalyzed CH-activation and light-induced bismuthinidene transfer.

The uptake and release of small molecules continue to be challenging tasks of utmost importance in synthetic chemistry. The combination of such small molecule activation with subsequent transformations to generate unusual reactivity patterns opens up new prospects for this field of research. Here, we report the reaction of CO and CS with cationic bismuth(iii) amides.

Medicinal plants used by rural Thai people to treat non-communicable diseases and related symptoms.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are becoming more common in remote regions, whereas previously they were more common in middle-class to wealthy societies. The rising prevalence and severity of NCDs has increased the demand for medical innovation in this space. In this regard, knowledge of traditional medicines used in the treatment of NCDs, by people in the remote communities of Thailand, represents an innovation opportunity.

Future prospects and recent developments of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) piezoelectric polymer; fabrication methods, structure, and electro-mechanical properties.

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is a favorite polymer with excellent piezoelectric properties due to its mechanical and thermal stability. This article provides an overview of recent developments in the modification of PVDF fibrous structures and prospects for its application with a major focus on energy harvesting devices, sensors and actuator materials, and other types of biomedical engineering and devices. Many sources of energy harvesting are available in the environment, including waste-heated mechanical, wind, and solar energy.

Comment on Pyrrolizidine Alkaloids and Terpenes from (Asteraceae): Chemistry and Research Gaps in Africa.

The genus is one of the largest in Asteraceae. There are thousands of species across the globe, either confirmed or awaiting taxonomic delimitation. While the species are best known for the toxic pyrrolizidine alkaloids that contaminate honeys (as bees select pollen from the species) and teas via lateral transfer and accumulation from adjacent roots of in the rhizosphere, they are also associated with more serious cases leading to fatality of grazing ruminants or people by contamination or accidental harvesting for medicine.

Rumors of Psychedelics, Psychotropics and Related Derivatives in and in Contrast with Verified Records in Australian .

There are almost 1000 species of in Australia, while the 44 species and 4 subspecies in southern Africa were taxonomically revised in the year 2011 to and . There are rumors of a chemical similarity between the Australian and their southern African sister genera. Chemical analysis has unequivocally demonstrated the presence of tryptamines (i.

Intermolecular Covalent Interactions: Nature and Directionality.

Quantum chemical methods were employed to analyze the nature and the origin of the directionality of pnictogen (PnB), chalcogen (ChB), and halogen bonds (XB) in archetypal F Z⋅⋅⋅F complexes (Z=Pn, Ch, X), using relativistic density functional theory (DFT) at ZORA-M06/QZ4P. Quantitative Kohn-Sham MO and energy decomposition analyses (EDA) show that all these intermolecular interactions have in common that covalence, that is, HOMO-LUMO interactions, provide a crucial contribution to the bond energy, besides electrostatic attraction. Strikingly, all these bonds are directional (i.

Discovery of novel druggable pockets on polyomavirus VP1 through crystallographic fragment-based screening to develop capsid assembly inhibitors.

Polyomaviruses are a family of ubiquitous double-stranded DNA viruses many of which are human pathogens. These include BK polyomavirus which causes severe urinary tract infection in immunocompromised patients and Merkel cell polyomavirus associated with aggressive cancers. The small genome of polyomaviruses lacks conventional drug targets, and no specific drugs are available at present.

Processing-properties-performance triad relationship in a mesoporous carbon materials-based supercapacitor device.

Two-electrode electrochemical tests provide a close performance approximation to that of an actual supercapacitor device. This study presents mesoporous carbon materials successfully derived from bark (Mexican fan palm) and their electrical performance in a 2-electrode supercapacitor device. The triad relationship among carbon materials "processing, properties, and performance" was comprehensively investigated.

17α-Ethinylestradiol (EE2): concentrations in the environment and methods for wastewater treatment - an update.

17α-Ethinylestradiol (EE2) is a frequently used drug and an endocrine disruptive substance. Adverse effects on biota have been reported when they are exposed to this substance in the environment. The last review on EE2 in the environment was published in 2014.

Demonstration of the utility of DOS-derived fragment libraries for rapid hit derivatisation in a multidirectional fashion.

Organic synthesis underpins the evolution of weak fragment hits into potent lead compounds. Deficiencies within current screening collections often result in the requirement of significant synthetic investment to enable multidirectional fragment growth, limiting the efficiency of the hit evolution process. Diversity-oriented synthesis (DOS)-derived fragment libraries are constructed in an efficient and modular fashion and thus are well-suited to address this challenge.

Supported metal and metal oxide particles with proximity effect for catalysis.

External influence is essential for any change to occur in this world. Similarly, the reaction path of a chemical reaction can be changed with the addition of a catalyst from outside. Sometimes a catalyst performs better when it remains associated with an inert substance, which is called a support material (SM).