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Humans introduced paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera) from Taiwan into the Pacific over 5000 years ago as a fiber source to make barkcloth textiles that were, and still are, important cultural artifacts throughout the Pacific. We have used B. papyrifera, a species closely associated to humans, as a proxy to understand the human settlement of the Pacific Islands. We report the first genetic analysis of paper mulberry textiles from historical and archaeological contexts (200 to 50 years before present) and compare our results with genetic data obtained from contemporary and herbarium paper mulberry samples. Following stringent ancient DNA protocols, we extracted DNA from 13 barkcloth textiles. We confirmed that the fiber source is paper mulberry in nine of the 13 textiles studied using the nuclear ITS-1 marker and by statistical estimates. We detected high genetic diversity in historical Pacific paper mulberry barkcloth with a set of ten microsatellites, showing new alleles and specific genetic patterns. These genetic signatures allow tracing connections to plants from the Asian homeland, Near and Remote Oceania, establishing links not observed previously (using the same genetic tools) in extant plants or herbaria samples. These results show that historic barkcloth textiles are cultural materials amenable to genetic analysis to reveal human history and that these artifacts may harbor evidence of greater genetic diversity in Pacific B. papyrifera in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera (L.) L'Hér. ex Vent) is a dioecious tree native to East Asia and mainland Southeast-Asia, introduced prehistorically to Polynesia as a source of bark fiber by Austronesian-speaking voyagers. In Oceania, trees are coppiced and harvested for production of bark-cloth, so flowering is generally unknown. A survey of botanical records of paper mulberry revealed a distributional disjunction: the tree is apparently absent in Borneo and the Philippines. A subsequent study of chloroplast haplotypes linked paper mulberry of Remote Oceania directly to a population in southern Taiwan, distinct from known populations in mainland Southeast-Asia. Methodology: We describe the optimization and use of a DNA marker designed to identify sex in paper mulberry. We used this marker to determine the sex distribution in selected localities across Asia, Near and Remote Oceania. We also characterized all samples using the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer sequence (ITS) in order to relate results to a previous survey of ITS diversity. Results: In Near and Remote Oceania, contemporary paper mulberry plants are all female with the exception of Hawaii, where plants of both sexes are found. In its natural range in Asia, male and female plants are found, as expected. Male plants in Hawaii display an East Asian ITS genotype, consistent with modern introduction, while females in Remote Oceania share a distinctive variant. Conclusions: Most paper mulberry plants now present in the Pacific appear to be descended from female clones introduced prehistorically. In Hawaii, the presence of male and female plants is thought to reflect a dual origin, one a prehistoric female introduction and the other a modern male introduction by Japanese/Chinese immigrants. If only female clones were dispersed from a source-region in Taiwan, this may explain the absence of botanical records and breeding populations in the Philippines and Borneo, and Remote Oceania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta is a large marine turtle with a cosmopolitan repartition in warm and temperate waters of the planet. The South Pacific subpopulation is classified as 'Critically Endangered' on the IUCN Red List, based on the estimated demographic decline. This precarious situation engages an urgent need to monitor nesting populations in order to highlight conservation priorities and to ensure their efficiency over time. New Caledonia encompasses a large number of micro and distant nesting sites, localized on coral islets widely distributed across its large lagoon. Adequately surveying nesting activities on those hard-to-reach beaches can prove to be challenging. As a result, important knowledge gaps prevail in those high-potential nesting habitats. For the first time, an innovative monitoring scheme was conducted to assess the intensity of nesting activities, considered as a proxy of the population size, on an exhaustive set of islets located in the 'Grand Lagon Sud' area. These data were analyzed using a set of statistical methods specially designed to produce phenology and nesting activity estimates using Bayesian methods. This analysis revealed that this rookery hosts a large nesting colony, with a mean annual estimate of 437 nests (95% Credible Interval = 328–582). These numbers exceed that of the previous estimated annual number of loggerhead turtle nests in New Caledonia, highlighting the exceptional nature of this area. Considering the fact that similar high-potential aggregations have been identified in other parts of New Caledonia, but failed to be comprehensively assessed to this day, we recommend carrying out this replicable monitoring scheme to other locations. It could allow a significant re-evaluation of the New Caledonian nesting population importance and, ultimately, of its prevailing responsibility for the protection of this patrimonial yet endangered species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Austronesian (AN) is the second-largest language family in the world, particularly widespread in Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) and Oceania. In Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA), groups speaking these languages are concentrated in the highlands of Vietnam. However, our knowledge of the spread of AN-speaking populations in MSEA remains limited; in particular, it is not clear if AN languages were spread by demic or cultural diffusion. In this study, we present and analyze new data consisting of complete mitogenomes from 369 individuals and 847 Y-chromosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 170 individuals from all five Vietnamese Austronesian groups (VN-AN) and five neighboring Vietnamese Austroasiatic groups (VN-AA). We found genetic signals consistent with matrilocality in some, but not all, of the VN-AN groups. Population affinity analyses indicated connections between the AN-speaking Giarai and certain Taiwanese AN groups (Rukai, Paiwan, and Bunun). However, overall, there were closer genetic affinities between VN-AN groups and neighboring VN-AA groups, suggesting language shifts. Our study provides insights into the genetic structure of AN-speaking communities in MSEA, characterized by some contact with Taiwan and language shift in neighboring groups, indicating that the expansion of AN speakers in MSEA was a combination of cultural and demic diffusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used a retrospective cohort study to measure the impact of caring for children on female Australian researchers. Our aim was to see whether caring for children was associated with reduced outputs and collaboration. Women were randomly selected for inclusion if they published a first author paper in one of three Australian journals during 2007 to 2015, women who did not publish during this time were not included. One-hundred and sixty women were approached and 95 (59%) completed a survey on their history of caring for children. Two key outcomes were the women's publication and citation counts, which were accessed from Scopus. We also examined the number of authors, affiliations and countries on their published papers, as a reduction in these numbers could indicate an impaired ability to collaborate. We examined the probability of being first or last author as a measure of esteem. There was a small increase in publication counts after the first child that was reversed after the second child. Average citations counts declined after children, particularly after the second child. There was some evidence of a reduced collaboration with overseas collaborators after the first child. The probability of being the last author increased after the second child. Three women were identified as statistically influential and all three had children and were in the top 10% of overall publications and citations. After removing these women the estimated changes in outcomes were noticeably different for most of the outcomes. The repeated presence of statistically influential women shows that it may be impossible to find an "average impact" of caring for children when considering research output. Adjustments may need to be made individually, with women explaining how caring for children has altered their career. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Governments commonly fund research with specific applications in mind. Such mechanisms may facilitate 'research translation' but funders may employ strategies that can also undermine the integrity of both science and government. We estimated the prevalence and investigated correlates of funder efforts to suppress health behaviour intervention trial findings. Methods: Our sampling frame was lead or corresponding authors of papers (published 2007–2017) included in a Cochrane review, reporting findings from trials of interventions to improve nutrition, physical activity, sexual health, smoking, and substance use. Suppression events were based on a previous survey of public health academics. Participants answered questions concerning seven suppression events in their efforts to report the trial, e.g., [I was...] "asked to suppress certain findings as they were viewed as being unfavourable." We also examined the association between information on study funder, geographical location, targeted health behaviour, country democracy rating and age of publication with reported suppression. Findings: We received responses from 104 authors (50%) of 208 eligible trials, from North America (34%), Europe (33%), Oceania (17%), and other countries (16%). Eighteen percent reported at least one of the seven suppression events relating to the trial in question. The most commonly reported suppression event was funder(s) expressing reluctance to publish because they considered the results 'unfavourable' (9% reported). We found no strong associations with the subject of research, funding source, democracy, region, or year of publication. Conclusions: One in five researchers in this global sample reported being pressured to delay, alter, or not publish the findings of health behaviour intervention trials. Regulation of funder and university practices, establishing study registries, and compulsory disclosure of funding conditions in scientific journals, are needed to protect the integrity of public-good research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main factors that attracts authors to choose a journal is the time interval between submission and publication, which varies between journals and subject matter. Here, we evaluated the time intervals between submission and publication according to journal impact factor and continent of author's affiliation, considering articles with authors from single or multiple continents. Altogether, 72 journals indexed in the Web of Science database within the subject matter "Genetics and Heredity", divided by impact factor into four quartiles and randomly selected were analyzed for time intervals from article submission to publication. Data from a total of 46,349 articles published from 2016 to 2020 were collected and analyzed considering the following time intervals: submission to acceptance (SA), acceptance to publication (AP) and submission to publication (SP). The median of the quartiles for the SP interval was 166 (IQR [118–225]) days for Q1, 147 (IQR [103–206]) days for Q2, 161 (IQR [116–226]) days for Q3 and 137 (IQR [69–264]) days for Q4, showing a significant difference among quartiles (p < 0.001). In Q4, median interval of time was shorter in interval SA but longer in interval AP, and overall, articles in Q4 had the shortest interval of time in SP. A potential association of the median time interval and authors' continent was analysed and no significant difference was observed between articles with authors from single versus multiple continents or between continents in articles with authors from only one continent. However, in journals from Q4, time from submission to publication was longer for articles with authors from North America and Europe than from other continents, although the difference was not significant. Finally, articles of authors from the African continent had the smallest representation in journals from Q1-Q3 and articles from Oceania were underrepresented in group Q4. The study provides a global analysis of the total time required for submission, acceptance and publication in journals in the field of genetics and heredity. Our results may contribute in the development of strategies to expedite the process of scientific publishing in the field, and to promote equity in knowledge production and dissemination for researchers from all continents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between body composition and earnings in a developing country setting. We use body mass index, waist circumference and hip circumference. Exploiting the panel structure of our longitudinal survey, we find that along with BMI, waist circumference is related to higher earnings in Indonesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The quandong or native peach (Santalum acuminatum R.Br.) has been recognised as an important and tasty food resource among Aboriginal Australians in arid and semi-arid areas of southern Australia. It is valued for its fruit that is consumed raw or dried, and for its kernel, which is eaten raw or ground into paste for medicinal and skin care purposes. This paper reports on a study of ground stone implements within the Murray Darling Basin that has identified quandong stones as a distinct type of implement made specifically for the efficient cracking of quandong nuts. Data are presented on 1,327 ground stone implements from collections in 12 different locations in the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), an area almost completely devoid of stone sources. Given the paucity of stone, multi-purpose use of implements is widely documented. Although it was common to find pits present in mortars and other ground stone tools demonstrating multiple functions, including use as anvils, a class of single purpose stones with multiple pits and distinctive form was identified. Most of these were found in areas known for groves of quandong and four were analysed for use-wear and residues along with two other ground stone items from the MDB. The results support their identification as specialised anvil stones for cracking quandong nuts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rural Australian populations experience an increased burden of ischaemic heart disease (IHD) compared to their metropolitan counterparts, similar to other developed countries, globally. Policy and other efforts need to address and acknowledge these differences in order to reduce inequalities in health burden. This paper examines rural health policy makers’ perceptions and use of evidence in efforts to reduce the burden of IHD in rural areas. Methods: Policy makers and government advisors (n = 21) who worked with, or advised on, rural health policy at local, state and federal government levels, with specific focus on the state of Victoria (n = 9) were identified from publicly available documents and subsequent snowball sample. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted in regards to the use of evidence in policy to prevent IHD and thematic analysis undertaken applying two theoretical perspectives: context-based evidence-based policy making and the conceptual framework for understanding rural and remote health. Results: The rural context, particularly low resourcing, was seen as limiting potential for evidence based policy at local government (LG) level. Lower levels of political pressure and education were seen as constraints to evidence-based policy in rural communities. Participants described the potential for policy to have a greater impact on reducing heart disease in rural areas though they felt under-resourced and out of touch with the scientific evidence. Scientific studies were less valued than local anecdote to prioritise specific policy. At all levels (local, state and federal) low self-efficacy in interpreting evidence and perceived lack of relevance inhibited development of evidence informed policy. Conclusion: The rural context constrains the use of scientific evidence in policy making for the prevention of heart disease in rural areas in Australia with multiple factors influencing the capacity for evidenced based health policy. This is similar to findings at the international scale and is for consideration across other developed countries that experience inequalities in IHD disease burden between rural and urban populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is broad recognition by practicing taxonomists that the field is going through a crisis, which has been dubbed the "taxonomic impediment". There are many aspects involved in said crisis, but publication practices in taxonomy are often neglected or relegated to the backseat. We provide an initial foray into this topic via a worldwide survey with taxonomists, spanning all botanical and zoological groups, and career stages. Demographically, most of the respondents identified themselves as males (70%), working in Europe or North America (68%), in universities (50%) or museums (27%). Over half of the respondents are established/late-career researchers (only about 25% of full professors were female), with a low number of early-career researchers and graduate students (i.e., taxonomists in training). Nearly 61% of the men acquired their highest title at least eleven years ago, while only 41% of the women did so. Nearly 92% of the respondents have published new species descriptions, while around 60% and 26% have synonymized, respectively, species-level or subspecies-level taxa. In general, respondents perceive the act of describing new species to be easier than synonymizing species (p = 0.05). Established/late-career researchers and male researchers, particularly in Oceania and North America, found it easier to publish nomenclatural acts such as new species descriptions, while early-career researchers had their acts contested more often. Our results reaffirm the low academic recognition of the field, the lack of funding for research and publishing charges especially in the Global South, and the difficulty in finding specialized outlets (and the low impact factor of those journals) as persistent issues in taxonomy. Other significant problems raised by respondents include ethical issues in the peer-review process, a bias against newcomers in the field coming either from established researchers or committees, and taxonomic vandalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Logistics Performance Index (LPI) on international trade of nations across each continent and worldwide. Secondary data collected on 142 countries—37 Asian, 41 European, 41 African, 3 Oceania, 14 Middle East, 11 North American and 9 South American–were analysed across the years 2007, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018. Panel regression technique was applied and the random effect (RE) model was chosen based on the results of the Hausman tests and Breusch–Pagan Lagrange Multiplier test. The findings revealed that the LPI has a positive relationship with net exports globally and specifically within the continents of Asia, Europe, and Oceania. Moreover, while the GDP appears to have a significant negative impact on net exports, specifically within Asia, in contrast, countries in Oceania and the Middle East present a positive relationship. Also on the African continent, GDP has a significant negative impact on the net exports. Findings provide a holistic picture of the impact of LPI & GDP on net exports, which will assist governments in the formulation and revision of its strategies and policies to expedite the growth of exports and in turn, the economy. This study was the first of its kind to explore the impact of GDP and LPI on international trade of nations across worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial and legal entities (e.g. banks, casinos, notaries etc.) have to report money laundering suspicions. Countries’ engagement in fighting money laundering is evaluated–among others–with statistics on how often these suspicions are reported. Lack of compliance can result in economically harmful blacklisting. Nevertheless, these blacklists repeatedly become empty–in what is known as the emptying blacklist paradox. We develop a principal-agent model with intermediate agents and show that non-harmonized statistics can lead to strategic reporting to avoid blacklisting, and explain the emptying blacklist paradox. We recommend the harmonization of the standards to report suspicion of money laundering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital technologies are increasingly intertwined into people's sexual lives, with growing scholarly interest in the intersection of sex and technology (sex–tech). However, much of the literature is limited by its over emphasis on negative outcomes and the predominance of work by and about North Americans, creating the impression that sex–tech is largely a Western phenomenon. Based on responses from 130,885 women in 191 countries, we assessed how women around the world interact with mobile technology for sex-related purposes, and whether in areas of greater gender inequality, technological accessibility may be empowering women with knowledge about sexuality. We investigated women's use of technology to find sexual partners, learn about sex and improve their sexual relationships, and track their own sexual health. About one-fifth reported using mobile apps to find sexual partners. This use varied by region: about one-third in Oceania, one-fourth in Europe and the Americas, and one-fifth in Asia and Africa. Staying connected when apart was the most commonly selected reason for app use with a sexual partner. About one-third had used an app to track their own sexual activity. Very few reported that the app they used to improve their sexual relationships was detrimental (0.2%) or not useful (0.6%). Women in countries with greater gender inequality were less likely to have used mobile apps to find a sexual partner, but nearly four times more likely to have engaged in sending and receiving sexts. To our knowledge, this study provides the most comprehensive global data on sex–tech use thus far, demonstrates significant regional variations in sex-tech use, and is the first to examine women's engagement in sex-related mobile technology in locations with greater gender disparities. These findings may inform large-scale targeted studies, interventions, and sex education to improve the lives of women around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tracking changes in total biomass production or land productivity is an essential part of monitoring land transformations and long-term alterations of the health and productive capacity of land that are typically associated with land degradation. Persistent declines in land productivity impact many terrestrial ecosystem services that form the basis for sustainable livelihoods of human communities. Protected areas (PAs) are key to globally conserve biodiversity and ecosystem services that are critical for human well-being, and cover about 15% of the land worldwide. Here we globally assess the trends in land productivity in PAs of at least 10 km2 and in their unprotected surroundings (10 km buffers) from 1999 to 2013. We quantify the percentage of the protected and unprotected land that shows stable, increasing or decreasing trends in land productivity, quantified as long-term (15 year) changes in above-ground biomass derived from satellite-based observations with a spatial resolution of 1 km. We find that 44% of the land in PAs globally has retained the productivity at stable levels from 1999 to 2013, compared to 42% of stable productivity in the unprotected land around PAs. Persistent increases in productivity are more common in the unprotected lands around PAs (32%) than within PAs (18%) globally, while about 14% of the protected land and 12% of the unprotected land around PAs has experienced declines in land productivity. Oceania has the highest percentage of land with stable productivity in PAs (57%), whereas Europe has the lowest percentage (38%) and also the largest share of protected land with increasing land productivity (32%). We discuss the observed differences between PAs and unprotected lands, and between different parts of the world, in relation to different types and levels of human activities and their impact on land productivity. Our assessment of land productivity dynamics helps to characterise the state, pressures and changes in and around protected areas globally. Further research may focus on more detailed analyses to disentangle the relative contribution of specific drivers (from climate change to land use change) and their interaction with land productivity dynamics and potential land degradation in different regions of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquaculture of bivalve shellfish and seaweed represents a global opportunity to simultaneously advance coastal ecosystem recovery and provide substantive benefits to humanity. To identify marine ecoregions with the greatest potential for development of shellfish and seaweed aquaculture to meet this opportunity, we conducted a global spatial analysis using key environmental (e.g., nutrient pollution status), socioeconomic (e.g., governance quality), and human health factors (e.g., wastewater treatment prevalence). We identify a substantial opportunity for strategic sector development, with the highest opportunity marine ecoregions for shellfish aquaculture centered on Oceania, North America, and portions of Asia, and the highest opportunity for seaweed aquaculture distributed throughout Europe, Asia, Oceania, and North and South America. This study provides insights into specific areas where governments, international development organizations, and investors should prioritize new efforts to drive changes in public policy, capacity-building, and business planning to realize the ecosystem and societal benefits of shellfish and seaweed aquaculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Non-AIDS-related mortality rates among HIV-infected patients still exceed those of their uninfected peers. A major driver of this excess mortality is a higher risk of non-infectious comorbidities, including cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis and cancer. The prevalence of mental illness and other chronic non-infectious comorbidities is identified as a primary concern of antiretroviral prescribers in Australia. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, observational study using data from MedicineInsight, a large-scale Australian primary care database comprising longitudinal data from electronic clinical information systems. The HIV-infected cohort included all men with a recorded diagnosis of HIV. The non-HIV-infected cohort comprised all other men from the same practices. The prevalence and risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, osteoporosis, cancer, anxiety and depression were compared between the groups. Results: We included 2,406 HIV-infected males and 648,205 males with no record of HIV diagnosis attending primary care in this study. HIV-infected men were less socioeconomically disadvantaged and more urban-dwelling than men in the primary care cohort. We found that HIV-infected men attending primary care in Australia are at increased risk of chronic kidney disease, cancer, osteoporosis, anxiety and depression. There appears to be a risk of premature onset of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and cancer among younger HIV-infected patients. There is a high prevalence of anxiety and depression among HIV-infected men. Conclusions: Increased prevalence of non-infectious comorbidities among HIV-infected men has broad implications for the effective management of those with these chronic conditions. Education to raise awareness among both HIV-infected men and their care providers, together with a greater focus on risk reduction, monitoring and preventive care, may be effective strategies in primary healthcare settings to further narrow the gap in health outcomes between people living with HIV and their uninfected counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Metabolic risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) warrant significant public health concern globally. This study aims to utilise the regional database of a major laboratory network to describe the geographic distribution pattern of eight different cardiometabolic risk factors (CMRFs), which in turn can potentially generate hypotheses for future research into locality specific preventive approaches. Method: A cross-sectional design utilising de-identified laboratory data on eight CMRFs including fasting blood sugar level (FBSL); glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c); total cholesterol (TC); high density lipoprotein (HDL); albumin creatinine ratio (ACR); estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR); body mass index (BMI); and diabetes mellitus (DM) status was used to undertake descriptive and spatial analyses. CMRF test results were dichotomised into ‘higher risk’ and ‘lower risk’ values based on existing risk definitions. Australian Census Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1) were used as the geographic units of analysis, and an Empirical Bayes (EB) approach was used to smooth rates at SA1 level. Choropleth maps demonstrating the distribution of CMRFs rates at SA1 level were produced. Spatial clustering of CMRFs was assessed using Global Moran’s I test and Local Indicators of Spatial Autocorrelation (LISA). Results: A total of 1,132,016 test data derived from 256,525 individuals revealed significant geographic variation in the distribution of ‘higher risk' CMRF findings. The populated eastern seaboard of the study region demonstrated the highest rates of CMRFs. Global Moran’s I values were significant and positive at SA1 level for all CMRFs. The highest spatial autocorrelation strength was found among obesity rates (0.328), and the lowest for albuminuria (0.028). LISA tests identified significant High-High (HH) and Low-Low (LL) spatial clusters of CMRFs, with LL predominantly in the less populated northern, central and southern regions of the study area. Conclusion: The study describes a range of CMRFs with different distributions in the study region. The results allow generation of hypotheses to test in future research concerning location specific population health approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bowel and bladder problems affect more than 50% of people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). These problems have a large impact on quality of life and place a significant burden on health systems. Objectives: This study aimed to ascertain the frequency of bladder and bowel problems in a select Australian MS cohort and to investigate the relationships between level of disability, bladder and bowel problems, and fatigue. Methods: Questionnaires on the nature and severity of MS symptoms were distributed to clients attending an Australian MS centre. Log-binomial regression and multiple linear regression models were used to investigate relationships between disability, fatigue, and bladder and bowel problems. Results and conclusions: Of 167 questionnaires distributed, 136 were completed. Bladder problems were reported by 87 (74.4%) respondents, whilst 66 (48.9%) experienced functional constipation and 43 (31.9%) faecal incontinence. This frequency in our select Australian MS population is similar to that reported globally. There was a significant correlation between level of disability and: bladder problems (p = 0.015), faecal incontinence (p = 0.001), fatigue (p<0.001) and constipation (p = 0.016, relative risk: 1.16). Further investigation into the causal relationships between various MS symptoms may be beneficial in the development of novel therapeutic strategies for people with MS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australian fire weather shows spatiotemporal variability on interannual and multi-decadal time scales. We investigate the climate factors that drive this variability using 39 station-based historical time series of the seasonal 90th-percentile of the McArthur Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI) extending from 1973 through 2017. Using correlation analyses, we examine the relationship of these time series to the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), considering both concurrent and time-lagged relationships. Additionally, longer term behaviour of the time series using linear trend analysis is discussed in the context of the climate drivers, Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) and anthropogenic climate change. The results show that ENSO is the main driver for interannual variability of fire weather, as defined by FFDI in this study, for most of Australia. In general, El Niño-like conditions lead to more extreme fire weather, with this effect stronger in eastern Australia. However, there are significant regional variations to this general rule. In NSW, particularly along the central coast, negative SAM is a primary influence for elevated fire weather in late-winter and spring. In the southeast (VIC and TAS), the El Niño-like impact is exacerbated when positive IOD conditions are simultaneously observed. The spring conditions are key, and strongly influence what is observed during the following summer. On longer time scales (45 years), linear trends are upward at most stations; this trend is strongest in the southeast and during the spring. The positive trends are not driven by the trends in the climate drivers and they are not consistent with hypothesized impacts of the IPO, either before or after its late-1990s shift to the cold phase. We propose that anthropogenic climate change is the primary driver of the trend, through both higher mean temperatures and potentially through associated shifts in large-scale rainfall patterns. Variations from interannual factors are generally larger in magnitude than the trend effects observed to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black leaf streak disease, or black Sigatoka, is caused by the fungus Pseudocercospora fijiensis, and has been identified as a major constraint to global production of banana and plantain. We fitted a climatic niche model (CLIMEX) for P. fijiensis to gain an understanding of the patterns of climate suitability, and hence hazard from this disease. We then calibrated the climate suitability patterns against the results of an expert elicitation of disease pressure patterns. We found a moderately strong non-linear relationship between modelled climate suitability for P.°fijiensis and the expert ratings for disease pressure. The strength of the relationship provides a cross-validation between the CLIMEX model and the expert elicitation process. The bulk of global banana production experiences high potential threat from P. fijiensis, and the higher yielding areas for banana and plantain production are at greatest threat. By explicitly considering the role of irrigation we have been able to identify how strategic irrigation could be used to support banana production in areas that are at low risk from P. fijiensis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

“Why are neurotypicals so pig-ignorant about autism?” an autistic person wrote on the Curtin Autism Research Group’s on-line portal as a response to a call for research questions. Co-produced with an autistic researcher, knowledge about and attitudes towards autism were analysed from 1,054 completed surveys, representing the Australian neurotypical adult population. The majority, 81.5% of participants had a high level of knowledge and 81.3% of participants had a strong positive attitude towards autism. Neither age, nor education level had an impact on attitudes. However, attitudes were influenced by knowledge about ‘Societal Views and Ideas’; ‘What it Could be Like to Have Autism’; and the demographic variables ‘Knowing and having spent time around someone with autism’; and gender (women having more positive attitudes than men). Thus, targeted interventions, geared more towards men than women, to increase knowledge about autism could further improve attitudes and increase acceptance of the autistic community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identity differences between a general access index (Accessibility/ Remoteness Index of Australia; ARIA+) and a specific acute and aftercare cardiac services access index (Cardiac ARIA). Research design and methods: Exploratory descriptive design. ARIA+ (2011) and Cardiac ARIA (2010) were compared using cross-tabulations (chi-square test for independence) and map visualisations. All Australian locations with ARIA+ and Cardiac ARIA values were included in the analysis (n = 20,223). The unit of analysis was Australian locations. Results: Of the 20,223 locations, 2757 (14% of total) had the highest level of acute cardiac access coupled with the highest level of general access. There were 1029 locations with the poorest access (5% of total). Approximately two thirds of locations in Australia were classed as having the highest level of cardiac aftercare. Locations in Major Cities, Inner Regional Australia, and Outer Regional Australia accounted for approximately 98% of this category. There were significant associations between ARIA+ and Cardiac ARIA acute (χ2 = 25250.73, df = 28, p<0.001, Cramer’s V = 0.559, p<0.001) and Cardiac ARIA aftercare (χ2 = 17204.38, df = 16, Cramer’s V = 0.461, p<0.001). Conclusions: Although there were significant associations between the indices, ARIA+ and Cardiac ARIA are not interchangeable. Systematic differences were apparent which can be attributed largely to the underlying specificity of the Cardiac ARIA (a time critical index that uses distance to the service of interest) compared to general accessibility quantified by the ARIA+ model (an index that uses distance to population centre). It is where the differences are located geographically that have a tangible impact upon the communities in these locations–i.e. peri-urban areas of the major capital cities, and around the more remote regional centres. There is a strong case for specific access models to be developed and updated to assist with efficient deployment of resources and targeted service provision. The reasoning behind the differences highlighted will be generalisable to any comparison between general and service-specific access models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vava’u, Kingdom of Tonga, is a well-established whale-watching destination in the South Pacific. Between July and October, the waters around the archipelago represent one of the most important breeding grounds for Oceania humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). The Tongan government allows tourist swimming activities with whales and tour operators strongly promote the practice of swimming-with-whales, focusing primarily on mother-calf pairs. However, there is increasing evidence, derived from empirical research on swim-with-cetacean tourism, that this kind of interaction affects cetacean behaviour and can lead to negative effects on the cetaceans involved. This study represents the first assessment of humpback whales’ behavioural responses to vessel and swimmer approaches in Vava’u. Fifty-six surveys took place during the 2016 and 2017 whale breeding seasons aboard dedicated research and tour vessels. Whale dive time, number of reorientation events, and respiration rates were documented in both the absence and presence of boats and swimmers. Vessel approach type, swimmer placement, and whale avoidance responses were also recorded. Results indicate that the average diving time and the proportion of time spent diving in the presence of swimming activities increased significantly for mother-calf pairs (F2 , 36 = 18.183, P < 0.001; F2 , 36 = 5.462, P = 0.009, respectively). Moreover, avoidance responses of whales towards tour vessels were observed for one third of vessel approaches (33.5%) and the avoidance rate was significantly affected by the boat approach type (95% CI: 20.7–69.2%, z = 3.50, P < 0.001). Finally, low levels of compliance to the existing Tongan swim-with-whales regulations were documented, in particular the stipulated whale resting time between interactions with tour operator vessels and swimmers was often not respected (38.4%). Vava’u is an important calving ground for the Oceania humpback whale population and these findings should be carefully considered by stakeholders in Tonga and at other locations where swim-with-whales opportunities are being undertaken. Effective strategies to reduce the risk of detrimental effects on the whales targeted by swimming activities, especially mother-calf pairs, are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Ageing in place is one of the greatest desires of elderly people. Assistive digital technologies could potentially delay the institutionalization of the elderly people and allow them ageing in place. This study develops a population-wide cost estimating framework for adopting digital technologies that can improve the quality of life of elderly people through examining an Australian region. Methods: We developed a five-stage cost estimation framework, which involved progressive forecasting of elderly population and direct cost estimation methods. The forecasting and cost estimation models have been set for a 10-year period because the prediction accuracy from cross-sectional data is better in the short to medium term compared to the long-term. For cost estimation, we categorised the ageing population on the basis of the number of chronic diseases that they have contracted. Costs of assistive technologies were collected from open sources. The model has been tested in the Fitzroy and Central West, a regional area of Queensland in Australia. A stakeholder panel discussion in a workshop format was used to validate the appropriateness of the proposed framework and the study findings. Results: This study identified eight common chronic diseases with different comorbidity patterns in Australia. We also identified the required assistive technologies to assist patients with chronic diseases. This study estimated that annual per capita cost for technological intervention could range from AUD 4,169 to AUD 7,551 on the basis of different price margins of the technologies. Conclusion: The approach of categorising the aged cohorts on the basis of the number of chronic diseases helps estimate population-wide costs compared to using single technology intervention costs for a particular chronic disease cohort. The cost estimation framework and the method developed in this study can assist the government to estimate costs for ageing-in-place programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Little is known about HIV treatment outcomes in Indonesia, which has one of the most rapidly growing HIV epidemics worldwide. Methods: We examined possible differences in loss to follow-up (LTFU) and survival between HIV-infected females and males over a 7-year period in an HIV clinic in Bandung, West Java. Data imputation was performed on missing covariates and a multi-state Cox regression was used to investigate the effects of sex and other covariates on patient transitions among four states: (1) clinic enrollment with HIV, (2) initiation/continuation/re-initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART), (3) LTFU, and (4) death. Results: We followed 3215 patients (33% females), for a total of 8430 person-years. ART was used by 59% of patients at some point. One-year retention was 73% for females and 77% for males (p = 0.06). One-year survival was 98% for both females and males (p = 0.15). Females experienced a higher relative hazard to transition from HIV to LTFU (adjusted hazard ratio 1.21; 95% confidence interval 1.00–1.45), but this decreased after adjustments for clinical variables (aHR 0.94; 95% CI 0.79–1.11). Similarly, a lower relative hazard in females to transition from ART to death (aHR 0.59; 95% CI 0.35–0.99) decreased after adjustments for demographic variables. Conclusion: This Indonesian cohort has low ART uptake and poor overall pre- and post-ART retention. Female-male differences in survival and retention were gone after adjusting for clinical and sociodemographic factors such as CD4 count and education level. Efforts should be made to improve retention among patients with lower education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The Code of Ethics of pharmacy practitioners in Australia recognises the obligation to provide care to patients in a culturally safe and responsive manner. The aim of this exploratory study was to examine how Australian community pharmacists understand and experience the concept of ‘culture’ in their everyday practice environment. Methods: Voluntary, semi-structured interviews were conducted at community pharmacy placement sites in South-East Queensland, Australia. Pharmacists were asked to recall an incident that evoked their cultural awareness during the course of their practice. The question stated, verbatim: “We are preparing our students to be pharmacists in a highly multicultural community. Can you think of an incident where you learnt something about another person’s culture or it made you more aware of your own culture? Please briefly describe the incident.” Reportable responses were collected from 59 of the 92 visited pharmacists. These responses were audio-recorded and transcribed. The data were collated and analysed through iterative, reflexive, thematic analysis using constant comparison. Results and significance: The responses provided a rich selection of lived experiences within Australian multicultural pharmacy practice, describing professional dilemmas, fears and the strategies employed to overcome practice challenges. Six main response categories were identified: (i) Language/communication challenges, (ii) Cultural attitudes and behaviours, (iii) Exposure to culture due to pharmacy location, (iv) Religion, gender, and age, (v) Prejudiced/perceived racist attitudes and discrimination towards ‘other’ cultures, (vi) Perceived ‘sameness’ of different cultures. The study has provided valuable insights into community pharmacists’ experiences of culture in their day-to-day professional practice, also highlighting the associated strategies used to maintain a high standard of practice. There is merit in ensuring that the pharmacy curriculum and professional development programs are designed to respond to the ethical obligation of pharmacists to practise in a culturally safe, responsive manner that acknowledges and incorporates the importance of culture, cultural differences and intercultural relations, while addressing culturally unique needs in a skilled and professional manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Planning for a re-emergent epidemic of smallpox requires surge capacity of space, resources and personnel within health systems. There are many uncertainties in such a scenario, including likelihood and size of an attack, speed of response and health system capacity. We used a model for smallpox transmission to determine requirements for hospital beds, contact tracing and health workers (HCWs) in Sydney, Australia, during a modelled epidemic of smallpox. Sensitivity analysis was done on attack size, speed of response and proportion of case isolation and contact tracing. We estimated 100638 clinical HCWs and 14595 public hospital beds in Sydney. Rapid response, case isolation and contact tracing are influential on epidemic size, with case isolation more influential than contact tracing. With 95% of cases isolated, outbreak control can be achieved within 100 days even with only 50% of contacts traced. However, if case isolation and contact tracing both fall to 50%, epidemic control is lost. With a smaller initial attack and a response commencing 20 days after the attack, health system impacts are modest. The requirement for hospital beds will vary from up to 4% to 100% of all available beds in best and worst case scenarios. If the response is delayed, or if the attack infects 10000 people, all available beds will be exceeded within 40 days, with corresponding surge requirements for clinical health care workers (HCWs). We estimated there are 330 public health workers in Sydney with up to 940,350 contacts to be traced. At least 3 million respirators will be needed for the first 100 days. To ensure adequate health system capacity, rapid response, high rates of case isolation, excellent contact tracing and vaccination, and protection of HCWs should be a priority. Surge capacity must be planned. Failures in any of these could cause health system failure, with inadequate beds, quarantine spaces, personnel, PPE and inability to manage other acute health conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The history of colonization contributed to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders becoming one of the most disadvantaged groups in Australia. The multiple social inequalities, and therefore the constant insecurities for many about low income, poor living conditions, unemployment, and discrimination, generate chronic stress in this population. In the Baby Teeth Talk Study, an oral-health randomized controlled trial, the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14) was administered to 367 pregnant Aboriginal women at baseline. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the PSS-14 in an Aboriginal population. The study analysed: (a) model fit; (b) dimensionality; (c) local dependence; (d) differential item functioning; (e) threshold ordering and item fit; (f) targeting; (g) reliability; and (h) criterion validity. The dimensionality analysis indicated a two-factor structure, with negatively and positively worded items clustering together and 21.7% (95% Agresti-Coull C.I. [17.8%, 26.2%]) statistically significant t-tests between the persons’ estimates. After the creation of composite items, the revised Perceived Distress (χ2 (21) = 11.74, p = 0.946) and Perceived Coping (χ2 (28) = 17.63, p = 0.935) subscales fitted the Rasch model. Reliability was modest (PersonSeparationIndexdistress = 0.72; PersonSeparationIndexcoping = 0.76). The latent correlation between the Perceived Distress and Perceived Coping subscales was r = 0.14. It is hypothesized that the social inequalities experienced by the Aboriginal population are so pronounced that even Aboriginal pregnant women that perceived themselves as coping well with life challenges ended up endorsing items regarding high levels of stress. The present research showed that a revised PSS-14 is a culturally valid and modestly reliable psychological instrument to measure stress in a population of pregnant Aboriginal women in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There are few quantitative studies on palliative care provision to Indigenous Australians, a population known to experience distinctive barriers to quality healthcare and to have poorer health outcomes than other Australians. Objectives: To investigate equity of specialist palliative care service provision through characterising and comparing Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients at entry to care. Methods: Using data (01/01/2010–30/06/2015) from all services participating in the multi-jurisdictional Palliative Care Outcomes Collaboration, Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients entering palliative care were compared on proportions vis-à-vis those expected from national statutory datasets, demographic characteristics, and entry-to-care status across fourteen ‘problem’ domains (e.g., pain, functional impairment) after matching by age, sex, and specific diagnosis. Results: Of 140,267 patients, 1,465 (1.0%, much lower than expected from statutory data) were Indigenous, 133,987 (95.5%) non-Indigenous, and 4,905 (3.5%) had a missing identifier. The proportion of patients with a missing identifier diminished markedly over the study period, without a corresponding increase in the proportion identified as Indigenous. Indigenous compared with non-Indigenous patients were younger (mean 62.8 versus 73.0 years, p<0.001), a higher proportion were female (51.5% versus 46.3%; p<0.001) or resided outside major cities (44.2% versus 21.5%, p<0.001). Across all domains, Indigenous compared with matched non-Indigenous patients had lower or equal risk of status requiring prompt intervention. Conclusions: Indigenous patients (especially those residing outside major cities) are substantially under-represented in care by services participating in the nationwide specialist palliative care Collaboration, likely reflecting widespread access barriers. However, the similarity of status indicators among Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients at entry to care suggests that Indigenous patients who are able to access these services do not disproportionately experience clinically important impediments to care initiation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of domestic money goes at the heart of debates about independence and equality in intimate relationships. It provides an important window on the individualization of family life and how couples reconcile ideals around egalitarian marriage ideologies with enduring gender inequality in society and the labor market. This study approaches these issues from the prism of couples’ banking arrangements (separate vs. joint accounts), an aspect of financial organization that approximates the executive management of household resources and which has received comparatively little attention. As such, it is amongst the first to deploy large-scale, household panel data (Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey, n = 15,379 observations from 7,054 couples) and binary and multinomial random-effect logistic regression models to examine trends over time in couples’ banking arrangements and their socio-demographic predictors. Key findings indicate that a large share of couples in Australia favors ‘mixed’ bank account strategies (i.e., holding both joint and separate accounts), but ‘egalitarian’ choices (i.e., dual separate accounts) are prevalent and on the rise. Couples’ bank account choices are influenced in theoretically-meaningful ways by economic resources, transaction costs, relationship history, gender-role attitudes, and family background. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Safety climate, which provides a snapshot of safety culture, is rarely measured in Indonesian healthcare organisations because there are no validated surveys that can be administered in its native language, Bahasa Indonesia. The objectives of this study were to translate and linguistically adapt the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire into Bahasa Indonesia, and investigate the internal construct validity and reliability of the translated survey. Methods: The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire was translated into Indonesian language through forward and backward translation. The internal construct validity and reliability of the translated survey was assessed using Rasch analysis which examines overall model fit, unidimensionality, response format, targeting, internal consistency reliability and item bias. Results: A total of 279 nurses (response rate 82%) completed the Indonesian version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. Most respondents were Division 2 registered nurses (n = 209; 75%), female (n = 174; 62%), and aged less than 30 years (n = 187; 67%). All six domains of the Indonesian version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire demonstrated unidimensionality (t-test less than 0.05 threshold value). However, suboptimal targeting (ceiling effect) was observed in all domains, and had at least one misfitting item (item fit residual beyond ±2.5) Item bias was also evident in most domains. Conclusion: This study has translated and validated an Indonesian version of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire for the first time. Whilst there was general support to sum items to obtain domain scores, further work is required to refine the response options as well as the wording and number of items in this survey to improve its overall measurement properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesia is the fifth largest cocoa-producing country in the world, and an increase in cocoa farming efficiency can help farmers to increase their per capita income and reduce poverty in rural areas of this country. This research evaluated the efficiency of Indonesian cocoa farms using a non-parametric approach. The results revealed that the majority of cocoa farms are operated relatively inefficiently. The average technical and allocative efficiencies (0.82 and 0.46, respectively) of these cocoa farms demonstrated that there is potential for improvement. The potential cost reductions range from 36 to 76%, with an average of 60%, if farmers practice efficiently. The technical and allocative efficiencies and cocoa farm economies are affected by the use of quality seeds, organic fertilizers, frequency of extension and training of farm managers, access to bank credit and the market, the participation of women, and the farm manager’s gender. An increase in the output would increase farmers’ income and reduce poverty in rural areas. This research suggests that the availability of extension and training provided to farmers as well as support for women farmer groups should be increased. Credit programs are also important for cocoa farmers, so policymakers should develop programs that make production credit more accessible for farmers, especially through cooperatives and banks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The benefits of clinical supervision are more pronounced for health professionals in rural and remote areas. Most clinical supervision studies to date have occurred in metropolitan centres and have used the survey methodology to capture participant experiences. There is a lack of qualitative research that captures participants’ lived experiences with clinical supervision at the frontline. Methods: Participants were recruited from rural and remote sites of two Australian states using a purposive maximum variation sampling strategy. Data were collected through individual, semi-structured interviews with participants. Data were analysed using content analysis and themes were developed. Sixteen participants from six professions completed the interviews. Results: Eight themes were developed including the content of supervision, context of supervision, value of supervision, increased need for professional support and unique characteristics of rural and remote clinical supervision. Conclusions: This study has highlighted the value of clinical supervision for the rural and remote health professional workforce. Furthermore, it has shed light on the unique characteristics of clinical supervision in this population. This information can be used by organisations and health professionals to ensure clinical supervision partnerships are effective thereby enhancing rural and remote workforce recruitment and retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bullying in schools is associated with an extensive public health burden. Bullying is intentional and goal oriented aggressive behavior in which the perpetrator exploits an imbalance of power to repeatedly dominate the victim. To differentiate bullying from aggressive behavior, assessment must include a valid measure of power imbalance as perceived by the victim. And yet, to date, there remains no agreement as to how to most accurately measure power imbalance among preadolescent children. This qualitative study explored children’s (age 9 to 11) understanding of power imbalance through thematic analysis of focus group discussions. Subthemes that emerged as influencing power imbalance include: age of victim, peer valued characteristics, and group membership and position. Subthemes of empathy and peer valued characteristics emerged as protecting against the negative impact of power imbalance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The common cutworm (CCW; Spodoptera litura Fabricius) is a serious herbivorous insect pest of soybean (Glycine max) in Asia and Oceania. Previously, we identified quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for CCW-antibiosis-resistance, CCW-1 and CCW-2, and antixenosis-resistance, qRslx1 and qRslx2, in the cultivar ‘Himeshirazu’. The effects of these QTLs are useful in the breeding of CCW-resistant cultivars. In this study, we conducted an antixenosis bioassay on CCW using recombinant inbred lines derived from a cross between a wild soybean (Glycine soja) and the leading cultivar ‘Fukuyutaka’ to identify CCW-resistance genes in G. soja. The QTL analysis revealed six and four novel antixenosis-resistance QTLs in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Among them, the QTLs on chromosomes 2 and 7, designated qRslx4 and qRslx3, respectively, were stably detected in both years. qRslx3 exhibited the largest effect in both years, suggesting that qRslx3 can be exploited in the breeding of CCW-resistant soybean. Furthermore, qRslx3 and qRslx4 can be used, along with previously reported QTLs from ‘Himeshirazu’, to enhance the CCW-resistance of soybean cultivars because their chromosomal positions are unique. These new CCW-resistance QTLs from G. soja should play important roles in the breeding of CCW-resistant soybean cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to understand the genetic diversity of traditional Oceanian starchy bananas in order to propose an efficient conservation strategy for these endangered varieties. SSR and DArT molecular markers are used to characterize a large sample of Pacific accessions, from New Guinea to Tahiti and Hawaii. All Pacific starchy bananas are shown of New Guinea origin, by interspecific hybridization between Musa acuminata (AA genome), more precisely its local subspecies M. acuminata ssp. banksii, and M. balbisiana (BB genome) generating triploid AAB Pacific starchy bananas. These AAB genotypes do not form a subgroup sensu stricto and genetic markers differentiate two subgroups across the three morphotypes usually identified: Iholena versus Popoulu and Maoli. The Popoulu/Maoli accessions, even if morphologically diverse throughout the Pacific, cluster in the same genetic subgroup. However, the subgroup is not strictly monophyletic and several close, but different genotypes are linked to the dominant genotype. One of the related genotypes is specific to New Caledonia (NC), with morphotypes close to Maoli, but with some primitive characters. It is concluded that the diffusion of Pacific starchy AAB bananas results from a series of introductions of triploids originating in New Guinea area from several sexual recombination events implying different genotypes of M. acuminata ssp. banksii. This scheme of multiple waves from the New Guinea zone is consistent with the archaeological data for peopling of the Pacific. The present geographic distribution suggests that a greater diversity must have existed in the past. Its erosion finds parallels with the erosion of cultural traditions, inexorably declining in most of the Polynesian or Melanesian Islands. Symmetrically, diversity hot spots appear linked to the local persistence of traditions: Maoli in New Caledonian Kanak traditions or Iholena in a few Polynesian islands. These results will contribute to optimizing the conservation strategy for the ex-situ Pacific Banana Collection supported collectively by the Pacific countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-resolution 16S rRNA tag pyrosequencing was used to obtain seasonal snapshots of the bacterial diversity and community structure at two locations in Gosung Bay (South Sea, Korea) over a one year period. Seasonal sampling from the water column at each site revealed highly diverse bacterial communities containing up to 900 estimated Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs). The Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were the most abundant groups, and the most frequently recorded OTUs were members of Pelagibacter and Glaciecola. In particular, it was observed that Arcobacter, a genus of the Epsilonproteobacteria, dominated during summer. In addition, Psedoalteromonadaceae, Vibrionaceae and SAR11-1 were predominant members of the OTUs found in all sampling seasons. Environmental factors significantly influenced the bacterial community structure among season, with the phosphate and nitrate concentrations contributing strongly to the spatial distribution of the Alphaproteobacteria; the Gammaproteobacteria, Flavobacteria, and Actinobacteria all showed marked negative correlations with all measured nutrients, particularly silicon dioxide and chlorophyll-a. The results suggest that seasonal changes in environmental variables contribute to the dynamic structure of the bacterial community in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical ecologists have demonstrated legacy effects in apparently wild landscapes in Europe, North America, Mesoamerica, Amazonia, Africa and Oceania. People live and farm in archaeological sites today in many parts of the world, but nobody has looked for the legacies of past human occupations in the most dynamic areas in these sites: homegardens. Here we show that the useful flora of modern homegardens is partially a legacy of pre-Columbian occupations in Central Amazonia: the more complex the archaeological context, the more variable the floristic composition of useful native plants in homegardens cultivated there today. Species diversity was 10% higher in homegardens situated in multi-occupational archaeological contexts compared with homegardens situated in single-occupational ones. Species heterogeneity (β-diversity) among archaeological contexts was similar for the whole set of species, but markedly different when only native Amazonian species were included, suggesting the influence of pre-conquest indigenous occupations on current homegarden species composition. Our findings show that the legacy of pre-Columbian occupations is visible in the most dynamic of all agroecosystems, adding another dimension to the human footprint in the Amazonian landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remote Oceania was colonized ca. 3000 BP by populations associated with the Lapita Cultural Complex, marking a major event in the prehistoric settlement of the Pacific Islands. Although over 250 Lapita sites have been found throughout the Western Pacific, human remains associated with Lapita period sites are rare. The site of Teouma, on Efate Island, Vanuatu has yielded the largest burial assemblage (n = 68 inhumations) of Lapita period humans ever discovered, providing a unique opportunity for assessing human adaptation to the environment in a colonizing population. Stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ15N, δ34S) of human bone collagen from forty-nine Teouma adults were analyzed against a comprehensive dietary baseline to assess the paleodiet of some of Vanuatu's earliest inhabitants. The isotopic dietary baseline included both modern plants and animals (n = 98) and prehistoric fauna from the site (n = 71). The human stable isotope data showed that dietary protein at Teouma included a mixture of reef fish and inshore organisms and a variety of higher trophic marine (e.g. marine turtle) and terrestrial animals (e.g. domestic animals and fruit bats). The domestic pigs and chickens at Teouma primarily ate food from a C3 terrestrial environment but their δ15N values indicated that they were eating foods from higher trophic levels than those of plants, such as insects or human fecal matter, suggesting that animal husbandry at the site may have included free range methods. The dietary interpretations for the humans suggest that broad-spectrum foraging and the consumption of domestic animals were the most important methods for procuring dietary protein at the site. Males displayed significantly higher δ15N values compared with females, possibly suggesting dietary differences associated with labor specialization or socio-cultural practices relating to food distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Length and age at maturity are important life history parameters for estimating spawning stock biomass and reproductive potential of fish stocks. Bias in estimates of size and age at maturity can arise when disparate distributions of mature and immature fish within a population are not accounted for in the analysis. Here we investigate the spatial and temporal variability in observed size and age at maturity of female albacore tuna, Thunnus alalunga, using samples collected across the South Pacific. Maturity status was identified using consistent histological criteria that were precise enough to allow for mature but regenerating females to be distinguished from immature females during the non-spawning season, permitting year-round sampling for maturity estimation in albacore. Using generalised linear mixed models, we found that the proportion of mature females at length varied significantly with latitude and time of year. Specifically, females at northern latitudes (∼10–20°S, where spawning occurs) were mature at significantly smaller lengths and ages than females at southern latitudes (∼20–40°S), particularly during the spawning season (October–March). This variation was due to different geographic distributions of mature and immature fish during the year. We present a method for estimating an unbiased maturity ogive that takes into account the latitudinal variation in proportion mature at length during a given season (spawning or non-spawning). Applying this method to albacore samples from the western region of the South Pacific gave a predicted length at 50% mature of ∼87 cm fork length (4.5 years). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parts of coral reefs from New Caledonia (South Pacific) were registered at the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2008. Management strategies aiming at preserving the exceptional ecological value of these reefs in the context of climate change are currently being considered. This study evaluates the appropriateness of an exclusive fishing ban of herbivorous fish as a strategy to enhance coral reef resilience to hurricanes and bleaching in the UNESCO-registered areas of New Caledonia. A two-phase approach was developed: 1) coral, macroalgal, and herbivorous fish communities were examined in four biotopes from 14 reefs submitted to different fishing pressures in New Caledonia, and 2) results from these analyses were challenged in the context of a global synthesis of the relationship between herbivorous fish protection, coral recovery and relative macroalgal development after hurricanes and bleaching. Analyses of New Caledonia data indicated that 1) current fishing pressure only slightly affected herbivorous fish communities in the country, and 2) coral and macroalgal covers remained unrelated, and macroalgal cover was not related to the biomass, density or diversity of macroalgae feeders, whatever the biotope or level of fishing pressure considered. At a global scale, we found no relationship between reef protection status, coral recovery and relative macroalgal development after major climatic events. These results suggest that an exclusive protection of herbivorous fish in New Caledonia is unlikely to improve coral reef resilience to large-scale climatic disturbances, especially in the lightly fished UNESCO-registered areas. More efforts towards the survey and regulation of major chronic stress factors such as mining are rather recommended. In the most heavily fished areas of the country, carnivorous fish and large targeted herbivores may however be monitored as part of a precautionary approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The maximum size and age that clonal organisms can reach remains poorly known, although we do know that the largest natural clones can extend over hundreds or thousands of metres and potentially live for centuries. We made a review of findings to date, which reveal that the maximum clone age and size estimates reported in the literature are typically limited by the scale of sampling, and may grossly underestimate the maximum age and size of clonal organisms. A case study presented here shows the occurrence of clones of slow-growing marine angiosperm Posidonia oceanica at spatial scales ranging from metres to hundreds of kilometres, using microsatellites on 1544 sampling units from a total of 40 locations across the Mediterranean Sea. This analysis revealed the presence, with a prevalence of 3.5 to 8.9%, of very large clones spreading over one to several (up to 15) kilometres at the different locations. Using estimates from field studies and models of the clonal growth of P. oceanica, we estimated these large clones to be hundreds to thousands of years old, suggesting the evolution of general purpose genotypes with large phenotypic plasticity in this species. These results, obtained combining genetics, demography and model-based calculations, question present knowledge and understanding of the spreading capacity and life span of plant clones. These findings call for further research on these life history traits associated with clonality, considering their possible ecological and evolutionary implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are expanding in the World Ocean as a result of climate change and direct anthropogenic influence. OMZ expansion greatly affects biogeochemical processes and marine life, especially by constraining the vertical habitat of most marine organisms. Currently, monitoring the variability of the upper limit of the OMZs relies on time intensive sampling protocols, causing poor spatial resolution. Methodology/Principal Findings: Using routine underwater acoustic observations of the vertical distribution of marine organisms, we propose a new method that allows determination of the upper limit of the OMZ with a high precision. Applied in the eastern South-Pacific, this original sampling technique provides high-resolution information on the depth of the upper OMZ allowing documentation of mesoscale and submesoscale features (e.g., eddies and filaments) that structure the upper ocean and the marine ecosystems. We also use this information to estimate the habitable volume for the world's most exploited fish, the Peruvian anchovy (Engraulis ringens). Conclusions/Significance: This opportunistic method could be implemented on any vessel geared with multi-frequency echosounders to perform comprehensive high-resolution monitoring of the upper limit of the OMZ. Our approach is a novel way of studying the impact of physical processes on marine life and extracting valid information about the pelagic habitat and its spatial structure, a crucial aspect of Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management in the current context of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]