Aerobic Training Attenuates Differences Between Black and White Adults in Left Ventricular-Vascular Coupling and Wasted Pressure Effort.

Background: Black compared with White adults have a higher risk for left-ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure possibly due to the early onset of alterations in ventricular-vascular coupling (ie, arterial [] to ventricular elastance [] ratio) and wasted pressure effort (). Aerobic training preserves the coupling ratio (/) and attenuates , but whether this applies to Black adults is unknown. We hypothesized that Black rather than White adults would have greater training-induced improvements in the / and .

Trends in the burden of most common obesity-related cancers in 16 Southern Africa development community countries, 1990-2019. Findings from the global burden of disease study.

Background: Obesity-related cancers in the 16 Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries is quite prominent. The changes and time trends of the burden of obesity-related cancers in developing countries like SADC remain largely unknown. A descriptive epidemiological analysis was conducted to assess the burden of obesity-related cancers, (liver, esophageal, breast, prostate, colon/rectal, leukemia, ovarian, uterine, pancreatic, kidney, gallbladder/biliary tract, and thyroid cancers) in SADC countries.

CryoEM reveals the complex self-assembly of a chemically driven disulfide hydrogel.

Inspired by the adaptability of biological materials, a variety of synthetic, chemically driven self-assembly processes have been developed that result in the transient formation of supramolecular structures. These structures form through two simultaneous reactions, forward and backward, which generate and consume a molecule that undergoes self-assembly. The dynamics of these assembly processes have been shown to differ from conventional thermodynamically stable molecular assemblies.

The use of beta-sitosterol for the treatment of prostate cancer and benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Herbal supplements are widely used to enhance prostate health. These supplements may contain several types of plant sterols, vitamins, and minerals. By weight, however, plant sterols make up an abundant ingredient component, with saw palmetto extract or its primary component, beta-sitosterol, often comprising the most abundant sterol.

Education and cognitive function among older adults in Brazil and Mexico.

Unlabelled: Education is protective against cognitive impairment. We used nationally representative data from Mexico and Brazil to assess the association between education and cognitive function. The sample included adults ≥ 50 years from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI) and the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS).

Impacts of ocean warming on echinoderms: A meta-analysis.

Rising ocean temperatures are threatening marine species and populations worldwide, and ectothermic taxa are particularly vulnerable. Echinoderms are an ecologically important phylum of marine ectotherms and shifts in their population dynamics can have profound impacts on the marine environment. The effects of warming on echinoderms are highly variable across controlled laboratory-based studies.

Sphingid caterpillars conspicuous patches do not function as distractive marks or warning against predators.

To avoid predation by visual predators, caterpillars can be cryptic to decrease detectability or aposematic to warn predators of potential unpalatability. However, for some species, it is not clear if conspicuous patches are selected to avoid predation. For example, Pandora sphinx (, Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) caterpillars are assumed to be palatable and have both cryptic (green, brown) and conspicuous (orange, red) color morphs.

Radical shift in the genetic composition of New England chicory populations.

Human activities have been altering the flora and fauna across the planet. Distributions and the diversity of species, and the phenotypes of individuals in those species are changing. New England with its rapidly changing human demographics is an ideal place to investigate these temporal changes in the habitat.

Moving past the challenges and misconceptions in urban adaptation research.

Although the field of urban evolutionary ecology has recently expanded, much progress has been made in identifying adaptations that arise as a result of selective pressures within these unique environments. However, as studies within urban environments have rapidly increased, researchers have recognized that there are challenges and opportunities in characterizing urban adaptation. Some of these challenges are a consequence of increased direct and indirect human influence, which compounds long-recognized issues with research on adaptive evolution more generally.

The terroir of the finch: How spatial and temporal variation shapes phenotypic traits in DARWIN'S finches.

The term is used in viticulture to emphasize how the biotic and abiotic characteristics of a local site influence grape physiology and thus the properties of wine. In ecology and evolution, such terroir (i.e.

Removing systemic barriers to equity, diversity, and inclusion: Report of the 2019 Plant Science Research Network workshop "Inclusivity in the Plant Sciences".

A future in which scientific discoveries are valued and trusted by the general public cannot be achieved without greater inclusion and participation of diverse communities. To envision a path towards this future, in January 2019 a diverse group of researchers, educators, students, and administrators gathered to hear and share personal perspectives on equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in the plant sciences. From these broad perspectives, the group developed strategies and identified tactics to facilitate and support EDI within and beyond the plant science community.

Aboveground competition influences density-dependent effects of cordgrass on sediment biogeochemistry.

Interspecific interactions between plants influence plant phenotype, distribution, abundance, and community structure. Each of these can, in turn, impact sediment biogeochemistry. Although the population and community level impacts of these interactions have been extensively studied, less is known about their effect on sediment biogeochemistry.

Changes in body mass index, obesity, and overweight in Southern Africa development countries, 1990 to 2019: Findings from the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study.

Background: High body mass index (BMI) is associated with stroke, ischemic heart disease (IHD), and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). An epidemiological analysis of the prevalence of high BMI, stroke, IHD, and T2DM was conducted for 16 Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) using Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) Study data.

Methods: GBD obtained data from vital registration, verbal autopsy, and ICD codes.

Population structure, seasonal genotypic differentiation, and clonal diversity of weedy dandelions in three Boston area populations ( sp.).

Weedy dandelions have a worldwide distribution and thrive in urban environments despite a lack of sexual reproduction throughout most of its range. North American dandelions, introduced from Eurasia, are believed to be primarily, if not exclusively, apomictic triploids. In some European populations, apomicts co-occur with diploid sexual individuals and hybridizations can create genetically unique apomicts, which may subsequently disperse and establish new populations globally.

Geography, Host Genetics, and Cross-Domain Microbial Networks Structure the Skin Microbiota of Fragmented Brazilian Atlantic Forest Frog Populations.

The host-associated microbiome plays a significant role in health. However, the roles of factors such as host genetics and microbial interactions in determining microbiome diversity remain unclear. We examined these factors using amplicon-based sequencing of 175 frog skin swabs collected from a naturally fragmented landscape in southeastern Brazil.

Evolutionary mismatch along salinity gradients in a Neotropical water strider.

The evolution of local adaptation is crucial for the in situ persistence of populations in changing environments. However, selection along broad environmental gradients could render local adaptation difficult, and might even result in maladaptation. We address this issue by quantifying fitness trade-offs (via common garden experiments) along a salinity gradient in two populations of the Neotropical water strider -a species found in both fresh (FW) and brackish (BW) water environments across Panama.

Broadening the impact of plant science through innovative, integrative, and inclusive outreach.

Population growth and climate change will impact food security and potentially exacerbate the environmental toll that agriculture has taken on our planet. These existential concerns demand that a passionate, interdisciplinary, and diverse community of plant science professionals is trained during the 21st century. Furthermore, societal trends that question the importance of science and expert knowledge highlight the need to better communicate the value of rigorous fundamental scientific exploration.

Temporal Trends and Familial Clustering of Ideal Cardiovascular Health in Parents and Offspring Over the Life Course: An Investigation Using The Framingham Heart Study.

Background Evidence suggests familial aggregation and intergenerational associations for individual cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics. Over a 53-year life course, we examined trends and association of CVH between parents and their offspring at similar mean ages. Methods and Results We conducted a series of cross-sectional analyses of the FHS (Framingham Heart Study).

100-year time series reveal little morphological change following impoundment and predator invasion in two Neotropical characids.

Human activities are dramatically altering ecosystems worldwide, often resulting in shifts in selection regimes. In response, natural populations sometimes undergo rapid phenotypic changes, which, if adaptive, can increase their probability of persistence. However, in many instances, populations fail to undergo any phenotypic change, which might indicate a variety of possibilities, including maladaptation.

Urbanization erodes niche segregation in Darwin's finches.

Urbanization is influencing patterns of biological evolution in ways that are only beginning to be explored. One potential effect of urbanization is in modifying ecological resource distributions that underlie niche differences and that thus promote and maintain species diversification. Few studies have assessed such modifications, or their potential evolutionary consequences, in the context of ongoing adaptive radiation.

: An R package for population genetic simulation and numerical analysis.

Here, I briefly present a new R package called that has been designed primarily for the purposes of teaching evolutionary biology, population genetics, and evolutionary theory. Functions of the package can be used to conduct simulations and numerical analyses of a wide range of evolutionary phenomena that would typically be covered in advanced undergraduate through graduate-level curricula in population genetics or evolution. For instance, functions can be used to visualize gene frequency changes through time under multiple deterministic and stochastic processes, to compute and animate the changes in phenotypic trait values or distributions under natural selection, to numerically analyze and graph the outcome of simple game theory models, and to plot coalescence within a population experiencing genetic drift, along with a number of other things.

Void sorcerer: an open source, open access framework for mouse uroflowmetry.

Observational and experimental studies of rodent voiding behaviors have greatly contributed to our understanding of lower urinary tract function including the complex social, environmental, and internal stimuli that affect voiding in health and models of disease. Void spot assays (VSA), cystometry (awake or anesthetized), and uroflowmetry are techniques commonly used in rodent models to assess voiding. Uroflowmetry is non-invasive and can be performed multiple times in the same freely moving animals and can be used to generate synchronized video corresponding to each void to characterize micturition patterns (e.

A roadmap for urban evolutionary ecology.

Urban ecosystems are rapidly expanding throughout the world, but how urban growth affects the evolutionary ecology of species living in urban areas remains largely unknown. Urban ecology has advanced our understanding of how the development of cities and towns change environmental conditions and alter ecological processes and patterns. However, despite decades of research in urban ecology, the extent to which urbanization influences evolutionary and eco-evolutionary change has received little attention.