Modeling-Facilitated Field Survey Discovers of a New Population of the Annamite Striped Rabbit in Kon Tum Province, Vietnam.

The Annamite striped rabbit () is an Endangered lagomorph endemic to the Annamite Mountain Range in Vietnam and Laos, with much unknown about its distribution range. In this study, we used previously known records of the Annamite striped rabbit to construct distribution models using Maxent, a modeling approach that has been proven to be robust in identifying potential areas of undiscovered populations of targeted species. Using the optimal model results as a guideline to select the field site, we conducted a systematic camera trap survey in Dak Long Protection Forest, Kon Tum Province, Vietnam.

Impact of ligand fields on Kubas interaction of open copper sites in MOFs with hydrogen molecules: an electronic structural insight.

We investigate hydrogen sorption on open copper sites in various ligand coordinations of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), including the triangular T(CuL) in MFU-4l, the linear L(CuL) in NU2100, and the paddlewheel P(CuL) in HKUST-1 from an electronic structure perspective using DFT calculations. The ligand-field-induced splitting of d states and spd hybridizations in copper are thoroughly examined. The hybridization between Cu s, p, and d orbitals occurs in various forms to optimize the Coulomb repulsion of different ligand fields.

First record of a mixed species association between Hatinh langur () and red-shanked douc ().

In primates, mixed species associations are not common occurrences, and have been linked to both ecological and anthropogenic factors. We present camera-trapping records of a mixed association between two primates, the Hatinh langur () and red-shanked douc () and discuss possible hypotheses for this occurrence. To our knowledge, this is the first evidence of such an association in the wild of these two threatened primates, and thus contributes to our limited ecological knowledge of the species.

Multivariate analysis of craniodental morphology in mouse-eared bats (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae, ) from Vietnam.

This study conducted biostatistical multivariate analyses on 23 craniodental morphological measurements from 209 specimens to study interspecific variations amongst 15 bat species of the genus in Vietnam. Univariate and multivariate analyses demonstrated that the studied species can be divided into four groups as follows: extra-large-sized species (), large-sized species (, and ), medium-sized species (, , , , , and ) and small-sized species (, M.aff.

Targeted next-generation sequencing determined a novel variant that is associated with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2C: A case report.

Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy-type 2C (LGMD2C) is caused by mutations in the gene. Here, we report a case of a 26-year-old male who had inactive walking due to proximal muscle weakness. Targeted next-generation sequencing found a novel variant c.

Phage engineering and phage-assisted CRISPR-Cas delivery to combat multidrug-resistant pathogens.

Antibiotic resistance ranks among the top threats to humanity. Due to the frequent use of antibiotics, society is facing a high prevalence of multidrug resistant pathogens, which have managed to evolve mechanisms that help them evade the last line of therapeutics. An alternative to antibiotics could involve the use of bacteriophages (phages), which are the natural predators of bacterial cells.

Organo-photocatalytic C-H bond oxidation: an operationally simple and scalable method to prepare ketones with ambient air.

Oxidative C-H functionalization with O is a sustainable strategy to convert feedstock-like chemicals into valuable products. Nevertheless, eco-friendly O-utilizing chemical processes, which are scalable yet operationally simple, are challenging to develop. Here, we report our efforts, organo-photocatalysis, in devising such protocols for catalytic C-H bond oxidation of alcohols and alkylbenzenes to ketones using ambient air as the oxidant.

Cystic pulmonary tuberculosis: A rare form of an ancient disease.

Cystic pulmonary tuberculosis is a unique form of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) presenting with multiple reversible cysts of the lung. Unlike the other forms, this cystic lung disease can improve with prompt tuberculosis treatments. Here we report the case of a 15-year-old girl who presented with respiratory failure and severe lung damage at hospital admission.

Transgenerational exposure to marine heatwaves ameliorates the lethal effect on tropical copepods regardless of predation stress.

Marine heatwaves (MHWs) are emerging as a severe stressor in marine ecosystems. Extreme warm sea surface temperatures during MHWs often exceed the optimal thermal range for more than one generation of tropical coastal zooplankton. However, it is relatively unknown whether transgenerational plasticity (TGP) to MHWs may shape the offspring's fitness, particularly in an ecologically relevant context with biotic interactions such as predation stress.

Managing bank performance under COVID-19: A novel inverse DEA efficiency approach.

The evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic is highly unpredictable; however, its impacts are limited to neither a single sector nor a single country. This study evaluates the performance and efficiency of 49 Islamic banks across 10 countries during 2019-2020 to assess how those banks can preserve their performance and remain resilient in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the conventional inverse data envelopment analysis (InvDEA) approach, we show that because of reductions in their outputs, 31 out of the 49 banks studied would need to reduce their inputs so that their efficiency can remain unchanged.

COVID-19 crisis and risk spillovers to developing economies: Evidence from Africa.

This study provides new evidence on how risk spillovers occur from the United States to developing economies in Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results show that downside risk exposures of African markets, financial firms and banks particularly increased during Phase I (30 January to 30 April 2020). The nature and magnitude of downside risk exposures of African financial markets were similar to those of the United States.

Flexible, affordable and environmentally sustainable solar vapor generation based on ferric tannate/bacterial cellulose composite for efficient desalination solutions.

Desalination by solar steam generation (SSG) system is a green technology to produce pure water, which can address the issue of water scarcity. A novel photothermal material for the SSG system was fabricated by immersing bacterial cellulose (BC) sequentially into tannic acid (TA) and iron(iii) (Fe) solutions. Surface analysis of the resulting BC-TA-Fe (BTF) material showed that coordination nanocomplexes between Fe and hydroxyl groups of TA were formed on the surface of cellulose nanofibers.

Integrative taxonomy reveals three new taxa within the complex (Caudata, Salamandridae) from Vietnam.

The complex from northern Vietnam is reviewed based on morphological comparisons and analysis of the mitochondrial marker NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (ND2). Based on molecular divergences, which were revealed to be higher than in other congeners, in concert with morphological differences, two new species and one subspecies are described herein: differs from by 3.2 to 3.

Re-examination of the Chinese record of (Squamata, Natricidae), resulting in the first national record of and description of a new species.

The taxonomic status of the previous record of Stuart & Chuaynkern, 2007 from Guangdong and Guangxi, southern China, is revised based on the comparison of morphological and molecular data collected from the Chinese specimens and the holotype of from Thailand and Ziegler, Pham, Nguyen, Nguyen, Wang, Wang, Stuart & Le, 2019 from Vietnam. Results reveal that the population from Shiwandashan Nature Reserve in southern Guangxi, China belongs to , and represents the first national record for China; the populations from western Guangdong and southeastern Guangxi are described as a new species, We suggest that should be removed from the Chinese herpetofauna checklist. The new national record of and the description of the new species bring the total number of to 13 in China.