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Antibiotic resistance is a health and socioeconomic crisis recognized as a serious threat affecting humans worldwide. Overuse of antibiotics enhances the spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria, causing drug-resistant infections which can be difficult to treat. This resistance, mostly of the acquired type, is thus a major clinical issue. Acquired resistance can occur by horizontal transfer of genes between bacteria (community settings), by vertical transmission that can occur between mother and her offspring at birth and during lactation, or spontaneously due to antibiotic exposure. While there have been multiple studies about the horizontal transfer of antibiotic-resistance genes, not many studies have been conducted to study their vertical transmission. Vertical transmission is of importance as the early bacterial colonization of infants has an impact on their health and immune programming throughout life. This review discusses some possible mechanisms of mother-to-infant transmission of antibiotics and antibiotic-resistant strains and addresses the knowledge gaps for further studies.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between the Associate Degrees for Transfer (ADT) and bachelor’s degree attainment at the California State University (CSU) system. This study focused on Black and African American students who earned an ADT and transferred from California community colleges (CCCs) to the CSU system. This study also explored students’ educational and transfer goals through ADT pathways that might significantly impact transfer rates and bachelor’s degree completion for Black and African American students. In 2010, the state of California mandated that the CCC system establish associate degrees for transfer. The CSU system would guarantee admission to students with an ADT. Although community collegeshaveoffered ADTs since the 2011-2012 academic year, it was unclear if Black and African American students benefited from the prescribed 2-year transfer pathways and degree completion. This study useddescriptive statistics to identify pathways in demand, logistic regression analysis to identify predictors of baccalaureate degree completion, and chi-square tests to determine if there was a statistically significant relationship between the ADT and time to degree.

Microplastics are small (1µm-5mm) particles that are ubiquitous in the environment. Recent studies have proven its ill effects on the environment and biota. The tiny pieces of plastic are transported into the marine realm by rivers, surface runoff, and winds. However, a research gap exists in the literature involving the processes that control the distribution of microplastics in a transitional environment connecting land and sea. In the present study, we explore the presence of microplastics in water samples, which include pore water (n=8), groundwater (n=4), and seawater (n=4) from tropical beaches in southwest India. The mean (± standard deviation) abundance of porewater samples is 0.75 ± 0.66 pieces per litre, groundwater is 0.15 ± 0.1 pieces per litre, and seawater is 0.11 ± 0.07 pieces per litre. . The recovered category of microplastics includes fibre, fragment, film, and foam, among which fibres are the most dominant. Transparent, black, blue, white, and red were the different colors observed in the study. Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy revealed the presence of polyester ¿ low-density polyethylene ¿ polystyrene. The possible sources of the observed microplastics could be attributed to fishing activities and the washing of clothes by the coastal community. Further, there is every possibility of microplastics getting washed onto the shore by the incoming waves. The presence of microplastics in the porewater samples suggests the vertical transfer of fibrous microplastics through the porous sandy sediments and into the subterranean estuary. Besides, we propose that submarine groundwater discharge acts as a pathway and plays a crucial role in the transport of microplastics from continents into the oceans. Also see: https://micro2022.sciencesconf.org/426820/document, In MICRO 2022, Online Atlas Edition: Plastic Pollution from MACRO to nano

Contribution: This article details the potential impacts of a curricular revision at a four-year institution on electrical and computer engineering (ECE) vertical transfer students using Heileman et al. ’s curricular complexity framework. Background: The curriculum refresh was prompted by a National Science Foundation funded program called “Revolutionizing Engineering Departments”—encouraging departments to radically shift their curricula and cultures such that it is not possible to complete a one-to-one mapping between the former curriculum and new curriculum. The purpose of the study was to examine the extent to which transfer students could integrate into the new curriculum. Research Questions: This article addresses the following research question, “how did the structural complexities of the transfer student pathways into the ECE degree programs change from their previous iterations?” Methodology: Plans of the study were collected from 12 community colleges that had articulated pathways into ECE bachelor’s degree programs ( $n = 24$ plans of study) at a four-year institution and aligned those plans with the university pathways both before and after the radical curricular change. The complexities of transfer degree pathways of the old and new curriculum were compared using Heileman et al.’s structural complexity metric. Findings: All transfer pathways in ECE increased in complexity by 84% on average. We found Computer Engineering to be a much less supported transfer pathway throughout the state’s community college system compared to Electrical Engineering. Moreover, we found considerable variation in the community college system, raising concerns of consistency across partnerships in the state’s system. Other programs can adopt the approach presented here to evaluate the complexity of their curricula.

More than a third of students enter higher education at a community college; most aim to earn a baccalaureate. Drawing on sense-making theory and longitudinal qualitative data, we examined how community college students interpret state transfer policies and how their interpretations influence subsequent behavior. Data from 3 years of interviews revealed how students adjudicate between multiple intersecting policies. The higher education context, where institutions provided competing signals about policies, left students to navigate complex messages to achieve their transfer goals. Students’ approaches to understanding transfer policies primarily followed one of two patterns: adopting policy signals as step-by-step procedures or adapting and combining policy signals to create a customized transfer pathway. Both approaches had important implications for students’ transfer outcomes.

States and institutions increasingly rely on articulation agreements to streamline vertical transfer, although the effectiveness of those policies on transfer student outcomes remains unclear. To better understand this effectiveness, we explored a partnership between the College of Engineering at a mid-Atlantic research university and two community colleges located within the same state. We interviewed engineering faculty and academic advisors (i.e., the street-level bureaucrats who implement policy) to explore how an articulation agreement influences processes and policies related to coursework transfer. Our results revealed complexities in the implementation of the articulation policy as it collides with an enrollment management university policy that differs in purpose. Their collision has challenging implications for transfer students and for the faculty and advisors responsible for interfacing with those students.

Myxozoans usually have a complex life cycle involving indirect transmission between vertebrate and invertebrate hosts. The vertical transmission of these parasites in vertebrate hosts has not been documented so far. Here, we assessed whether the myxozoan parasite Myxobolus honghuensis is vertically transmitted in naturally infected allogynogenetic gibel carp Carassius auratus gibelio (Bloch). M. honghuensis infection of broodfish, fertilized eggs and laboratory-cultured progeny was monitored in 2018 and 2019. The presporogonic stage was microscopically observed in the pharynx of broodfish and their progeny. In situ hybridization confirmed the presence of M. honghuensis presporogonic stage in the pharynx of broodfish and progeny. Nested PCR results showed that M. honghuensis was present in tissues and eggs of broodfish, fertilized eggs and their corresponding progeny. The sequences obtained from broodfish and progeny showed 98.0-99.8% similarity with ITS-5.8S rDNA of M. honghuensis. This study provides molecular and light microscopy evidence for the transfer of M. honghuensis from broodfish to progeny via the eggs, but it is insufficient to assert that M. honghuensis can transmit vertically in naturally infected allogynogenetic gibel carp. This is the first record about vertical transfer of myxozoan in the vertebrate host.

Introduction The establishment of the neonatal gut microbiome is a crucial step that may have lifelong health implications. We aimed to systematically review evidence on maternal probiotic supplementation during pregnancy and vertical transfer of the corresponding strain to the infant gut. Material and methods Medline, CINAHL, Embase, Web of Science, and OVID were searched from inception to September 2018. Studies of maternal probiotic supplementation for a minimum duration of 2 weeks and analyses of neonatal stool samples were included. The primary outcome was presence of the specific probiotic strain in the infant stool. Electronic databases were searched for relevant studies and references were cross-checked. Risk of bias among included studies was assessed and data were extracted independently by two authors. Results Three studies were included in the review. Only one study was identified involving prenatal maternal probiotic supplementation alone. Neonatal colonization with the maternally administered probiotic was not demonstrated but supplementation with the probiotic influenced levels of a bacterial strain other than that found in the probiotic product. The other two studies identified included both prenatal and postnatal supplementation of either mother or infant. All three studies reported employing strain-specific isolation methodology to isolate the supplemented bacterial strain in infant stool but none used whole metagenome shotgun sequencing. Conclusions Few studies investigating transfer of a specific probiotic bacterial strain from mother to infant were identified, showing inconclusive evidence of vertical transfer.

The infamous garbage patches on the surface of subtropical oceanic gyres are proof that plastic is polluting the ocean on an unprecedented scale. The fate of floating plastic debris ‘trapped’ in these gyres, however, remains largely unknown. Here, we provide the first evidence for the vertical transfer of plastic debris from the North Pacific Garbage Patch (NPGP) into the underlying deep sea. The numerical and mass concentrations of plastic fragments (500 µm to 5 cm in size) suspended in the water column below the NPGP follow a power law decline with water depth, reaching values 3 and 3 in the deep sea. The plastic particles in the NPGP water column are mostly in the size range of particles that are apparently missing from the ocean surface and the polymer composition of plastic in the NPGP water column is similar to that of floating debris circulating in its surface waters (i.e. dominated by polyethylene and polypropylene). Our results further reveal a positive correlation between the amount of plastic debris at the sea surface and the depth-integrated concentrations of plastic fragments in the water column. We therefore conclude that the presence of plastics in the water column below the NPGP is the result of ‘fallout’ of small plastic fragments from its surface waters.

A major obstacle to in-depth investigation of the immune response against Nipah virus (NiV) infection is its rapid progression and high mortality rate. This paper described novel information on the vertical transfer of immune properties. In January 2020, a female aged below five years and her mother from Faridpur district of Bangladesh were infected. Both had a history of raw date palm sap consumption and were diagnosed as confirmed NiV cases. The daughter passed away, and the mother survived with significant residual neurological impairment. She conceived one and a half year later and was under thorough antenatal follow-up by the surveillance authority. A healthy male baby was born. As part of routine survivor follow-up, specimens were collected from the newborn and tested for NiV infection at the reference laboratory to exclude vertical transmission. Although testing negative for anti-Nipah IgM and PCR for NiV, a high titre of anti-Nipah IgG was observed. The transfer of humoral immunity against NiV from mother to neonate was confirmed for the first time. The article will serve as a reference for further exploration regarding NiV-specific antibodies that are transferred through the placenta, their potential to protect newborns, and how this may influence vaccine recommendations.

Purpose. The paper is aimed at investigating the momentum vertical transfer by inertia-gravity internal waves on a two-dimensional flow with a vertical shear of velocity, and also at studying the Stokes drift of liquid particles and the mean current effect on it. Methods and Results. Free internal waves in an infinite basin of constant depth are considered in the Boussinesq approximation with the regard for the Earth rotation. Two components of the mean current velocity depend on the vertical coordinate. The equation for the vertical velocity amplitude has complex coefficients; therefore the eigenfunction and the wave frequency are complex. The corresponding boundary value problem is solved numerically by the implicit Adams scheme of the third order of accuracy. The wave frequency at a fixed wavenumber was found by the shooting method. It was determined that the frequency imaginary part was small and could be either negative or positive depending on a wave number and a mode number. Thus, both weak attenuation and weak amplification of an internal wave are possible. The vertical wave momentum fluxes are nonzero and can exceed the corresponding turbulent fluxes. The Stokes drift velocity, transverse to the wave direction, is nonzero and less than the longitudinal velocity. The vertical component of the Stokes drift velocity is also nonzero and four orders of magnitude less than the longitudinal component. The signs of the vertical component of the Stokes drift velocity for the waves with the frequencies 10 and 16 cycle/h are opposite, since the signs of their frequency imaginary parts are different; and the vertical component of the Stokes drift velocity is proportional to the wave frequency imaginary part. Conclusions. The vertical momentum wave flux of inertia-gravity internal waves differs from zero in the presence of the current whose velocity component, transverse to the wave propagation direction, depends on the vertical coordinate. The component of the Stokes drift velocity, transverse to the wave propagation direction, is nonzero and less than the longitudinal one. The vertical component of the Stokes drift velocity is also nonzero and can contribute to formation of the vertical fine structure

Credit transfer information systems in higher education are not well studied. This article demonstrates the prototype development of a cross-institutional credit transfer information system (CICIS) for community college transfer (i.e., vertical transfer) students in an Asian educational context. It exhibits credit transfer guidelines and past credit transfer records to enhance the transparency and sustainability of credit transfer information and to facilitate the transfer process of prospective community college transfer students. It also ensures the sustainability of credit transfer information and its application. The four-phase life cycle of the prototyping model was adopted to guide the study. In this paper, we report the first three phases of this development: (1) Users’ needs assessment and pre-prototyping groundwork, (2) prototype development, and (3) unforeseen circumstances and expert review. Challenges and difficulties throughout the whole process are documented and discussed. Based on this prototype development experience, a solid foundation of strategies for future engineering and enhancement of credit transfer information systems can be developed.

Pregnant women have been carefully observed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the pregnancy-specific immune adaptation is known to increase the risk for infections. Recent evidence indicates that even though most pregnant have a mild or asymptomatic course, a severe course of COVID-19 and a higher risk of progression to diseases have also been described, along with a heightened risk for pregnancy complications. Yet, vertical transmission of the virus is rare and the possibility of placental SARS-CoV-2 infection as a prerequisite for vertical transmission requires further studies. We here assessed the severity of COVID-19 and onset of neonatal infections in an observational study of women infected with SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy. Our placental analyses showed a paucity of SARS-CoV-2 viral expression ex vivo in term placentae under acute infection. No viral placental expression was detectable in convalescent pregnant women. Inoculation of placental explants generated from placentas of non-infected women at birth with SARS-CoV-2 in vitro revealed inefficient SARS-CoV-2 replication in different types of placental tissues, which provides a rationale for the low ex vivo viral expression. We further detected specific SARS-CoV-2 T cell responses in pregnant women within a few days upon infection, which was undetectable in cord blood. Our present findings confirm that vertical transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is rare, likely due to the inefficient virus replication in placental tissues. Despite the predominantly benign course of infection in most mothers and negligible risk of vertical transmission, continuous vigilance on the consequences of COVID-19 during pregnancy is required, since the maternal immune activation in response to the SARS-CoV2 infection may have long-term consequences for children’s health.

International audience; Airborne sediment fluxes were measured in southern Tunisia on two experimental plots tilled with a moldboard and a tiller plough, respectively, during five wind erosion events of different intensities. The sediment fluxes were sampled on both plots using a mast equipped with seven sand traps positioned between ≈10 and 120 cm height. The windblown sediment fluxes in the 0–100 cm layer were about eight times higher on the plot tilled using the tiller plough compared to the plot tilled using the moldboard plough due to different efficiencies in the trapping of the saltating particles in the furrow, depending on the ridges characteristics. On both plots, sediment fluxes of larger particles were depleted in the sediment samplers compared to the proportions measured in the soil from which they were derived. When examining the sediment flux in the 30–100 cm layer, we observed that the efficiency of the vertical transfer was about twice higher on the moldboard plot than on the tiller one. This implies that a higher fraction of the sediment mobilized by wind can be transported over long distances in the case of a surface ploughed with a moldboard. This result could reduce in part the benefit of using the moldboard instead of the tiller plough regarding soil loss by wind erosion.

Objective: To transfer, students often must navigate complex and imperfect information about credit transfer, bureaucratic hurdles, and conflicting degree requirements. This study examined how administrators and transfer personnel think about institutional online transfer resources and examined community colleges’ online transfer information. Methods: For a sample of 20 Texas community colleges, we spoke to key transfer personnel about the information provided to students and reviewed college websites, assessing the ease of access and usefulness of online transfer information. We used a qualitative case study approach to triangulate findings from our data sources. Results: Approximately two thirds of colleges in the sample fell below the highest standard on our rubric for either ease of access or usefulness, indicating room for improvement at most institutions. Many personnel recognized the strengths and limitations of their college’s online information, though several were ambivalent about the need for improving online information, arguing that online information is not as promising an intervention as face-to-face advising. Conclusion/Contributions: Our research illustrates the need for colleges to develop and update their online information intentionally, determining which information students need to transfer (including transfer guides for partner programs/colleges) and how students might search for that information, and ensuring that necessary transfer information is available and up to date. The framework provided by our website review approach, coupled with a proposed rubric to assess ease of access and usefulness of transfer information, may guide institutions in their evaluation of their online transfer information.

Objectives: In this study, we explore the influence of enrolling initially at a community college before transferring to a 4-year institution on the selectivity of the destination 4-year institution. Method: We leverage nationally representative data and a propensity score matching approach to compare the institutional selectivity between students who begin at a community college before transferring to a 4-year institution and those who begin at a 4-year college or university. To estimate the relationship between the community college pathway and institutional selectivity, we employ an ordinal logistic regression model. Results: We find that transferring from a community college to a 4-year institution had a positive influence on the selectivity of students’ destination 4-year institution. More specifically, students who enroll initially at a community college before transferring to a 4-year institution have a greater probability of attending a very selective 4-year institution and moderately selective 4-year institution when compared with native 4-year students. Students who transferred from a community college have a lower probability of attending minimally selective 4-year institutions and open-admission 4-year institutions when compared with otherwise-similar students who began at a 4-year institution. Contributions: By showing a positive relationship between the vertical transfer and the level of selectivity of students’ destination 4-year institution, this study highlights a potential benefit of beginning at a community college before transferring to a 4-year institution.

ZusammenfassungDiese Einleitung führt in den theoretischen Rahmen des Sonderbandes zu Prozessen von Abgrenzung, Grenzziehung und Grenzverschiebung in islambezogenen Feldern ein. Zugleich wird reflektiert, dass auch religionswissenschaftliche Forschung Grenzen definiert und dabei mit dem Forschungsfeld interagiert. Religiöse und wissenschaftliche Diskurse werden als Bereiche eines interdependenten und miteinander verwobenen Kontinuums konzeptualisiert, innerhalb dessen die Grenzen nie ganz fixiert oder undurchlässig sind. Indem Konstruktionsprozesse von Islam oder muslimischen Identitäten an den Schnittstellen unterschiedlicher Felder geschehen, rücken Grenzen nicht nur als Werkzeug für politische Strategien in den Blick, sondern auch als Kontaktzonen, Schwellen und Orte von Transfers und Wissensproduktion. Die Einleitung betont daher den religionswissenschaftlichen Beitrag zur Konstruktion von Islam und diskutiert die (Selbst-)Verortung der Disziplin in diesem Spannungsfeld.

Are the incentives to expand expenditure before local elections affected by the composition of local governments’ revenues? We explore this issue by exploiting the Italian government bill that in 2008 replaced the municipal tax on main residence with a vertical transfer. Relying on staggered dates of municipal elections to identify the effect of the reform, we find evidence of a political budget cycle, but only for municipalities that in 2008 were in their pre-electoral year. The result suggests that a lower degree of municipal tax autonomy strengthens the incentives to expand the size of the budget before the elections.

Summary In this paper, the log response–vertical effective stress and acoustic velocity-density crossplots are used to identify the characteristics and generation mechanisms of the overpressure in the Linnan Sag. The analyses of the acoustic velocity/density–vertical effective stress and acoustic velocity-density crossplots demonstrate that the overpressured points consistent with the loading curve. So, the disequilibrium compaction of the thick Paleocene mudstones is the fundamental mechanism resulting in overpressures. Hydrocarbon generation and vertical transfer may be the main unloading mechanisms, that correspond to the overpressure points that deviate from the loading curves. Since organic matter cracking may occur in formations at depths deeper than 3800m, the contribution of hydrocarbon generation to overpressuring should be limited. The transfer of overpressure via opening faults is therefore considered as the main cause of higher overpressure in local sandstones. The results of this analysis provide an indication of the magnitude, mechanism and distribution of the overpressure. This understanding will help to guide further exploration activities in the Linnan Sag and similar geological basins.

Community colleges serve many roles, but perhaps their most important is as a stepping-stone to a four-year institution. Unfortunately, over the past few decades, baccalaureate attainment for those beginning at a community college has declined. This waning has sparked an effort by legislators, community college leaders, and educational researchers to identify policies and practices to improve these outcomes. This study contributes to this by using a nationally representative sample of first-time college students to explore which factors at the student, institution, and state level are associated with vertical transfer and baccalaureate attainment. Results from a multi-level model illustrate that variables at all three analysis levels were significantly related to vertical transfer or baccalaureate attainment. At the student level, meeting with an academic advisor, staying continuously enrolled as a full-time student, working part-time or less, and choosing a transfer-oriented major were positively associated with vertical transfer or baccalaureate attainment, while transferring horizontally (to another institution at the same level) was negatively related to baccalaureate attainment. At the institution level, the local unemployment rate was positively related and percent Pell recipients was negatively related to these outcomes. Cooperative agreements and statewide articulation guides were positively related to vertical transfer or baccalaureate attainment at the state level. The results offer insights that may be useful to higher education stakeholders and policymakers. I conclude with considerations for policy and practice, as well as for future research.

KAI-01050 is a high speed face-to-face interlinear transfer CCD produced by KODAK, USA, whose drive circuit has not only a high-speed horizontal transfer signal of up to 40 MHz, but also a vertical transfer signal with three level steps and an electronic shutter signal with high voltage pulses. The design of the history and development of CCD imaging systems, introduction of Kodak’s CCD image sensor KAI-01050 chip and its main features, structure, operating timing and timing drive mode, applications in imaging systems, as well as its external circuit design and other aspects of a detailed introduction.

Human milk contains a dynamic and complex site-specific microbiome, which is not assembled in an aleatory way, formed by organized microbial consortia and networks. Presence of some genera, such as Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium, Cutibacterium (formerly known as Propionibacterium), Lactobacillus, Lactococcus and Bifidobacterium, has been detected by both culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches. DNA from some gut-associated strict anaerobes has also been repeatedly found and some studies have revealed the presence of cells and/or nucleic acids from viruses, archaea, fungi and protozoa in human milk. Colostrum and milk microbes are transmitted to the infant and, therefore, they are among the first colonizers of the human gut. Still, the significance of human milk microbes in infant gut colonization remains an open question. Clinical studies trying to elucidate the question are confounded by the profound impact of non-microbial human milk components to intestinal microecology. Modifications in the microbiota of human milk may have biological consequences for infant colonization, metabolism, immune and neuroendocrine development, and for mammary health. However, the factors driving differences in the composition of the human milk microbiome remain poorly known. In addition to colostrum and milk, breast tissue in lactating and non-lactating women may also contain a microbiota, with implications in the pathogenesis of breast cancer and in some of the adverse outcomes associated with breast implants. This and other open issues, such as the origin of the human milk microbiome, and the current limitations and future prospects are addressed in this review.

Human milk contains a dynamic and complex site-specific microbiome, which is not assembled in an aleatory way, formed by organized microbial consortia and networks. Presence of some genera, such asStaphylococcus, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium, Cutibacterium(formerly known asPropionibacterium),Lactobacillus,LactococcusandBifidobacterium, has been detected by both culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches. DNA from some gut-associated strict anaerobes has also been repeatedly found and some studies have revealed the presence of cells and/or nucleic acids from viruses, archaea, fungi and protozoa in human milk. Colostrum and milk microbes are transmitted to the infant and, therefore, they are among the first colonizers of the human gut. Still, the significance of human milk microbes in infant gut colonization remains an open question. Clinical studies trying to elucidate the question are confounded by the profound impact of non-microbial human milk components to intestinal microecology. Modifications in the microbiota of human milk may have biological consequences for infant colonization, metabolism, immune and neuroendocrine development, and for mammary health. However, the factors driving differences in the composition of the human milk microbiome remain poorly known. In addition to colostrum and milk, breast tissue in lactating and non-lactating women may also contain a microbiota, with implications in the pathogenesis of breast cancer and in some of the adverse outcomes associated with breast implants. This and other open issues, such as the origin of the human milk microbiome, and the current limitations and future prospects are addressed in this review.

Background The dam is considered an important source of microbes for the calf; consequently, the development of calf microbiota may vary with farming system due to differences between the contact the calf has with the dam. The objective of this study was to characterise the early changes in the composition of oral and faecal microbiota in beef and dairy calves (N = 10) using high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. The microbiota of calves was compared to selected anatomical niches on their dams which were likely to contribute to the vertical transfer of microbes. Results A total of 14,125 amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) were identified and taxonomically assigned. The oral microbiota of calves and their dams were composed of more similar microbes after the first 4 weeks of life than immediately after calving. The faecal microbiota of four-week old calves was composed of microbes which were more similar to those found in the oral microbiota of calves and adult cows than the faecal microbiota of adult cows. Specific ASVs were identified in the oral microbiota of four-week old calves that were also present in cow niches at calving, whereas very few ASVs were present in the calf faecal microbiota at four-weeks of age were present in any adult cow niche at calving. These results were observed in both beef and dairy calves. Conclusions We did not observe any marked differences in the maturation of the oral and faecal microbiota between beef or dairy calves, despite dairy calves having very limited contact with their dam. This suggests the development of gastrointestinal microbiota in calves may not be affected by continued vertical transmission of microbes from the dam. Although the calf faecal microbiota changed over the first four-weeks of life, it was composed of microbes which were phylogenetically closer to those in the oral microbiota of calves and adult cows than the faeces of adult cows. There was little evidence of persistent microbial seeding of the calf faeces from anatomical niches on the cow at calving in either beef or dairy animals.

Product delivery via logistic systems is becoming more efficient, rapidly and continuously bringing products to the customer. The continuous operation of logistic equipment, however, can lead to mechanical stoppages due to excessive use. To avoid system failures, fatigue in each part of the system should be monitored, enabling the accurate prediction of potential stoppages and thus promoting overall system efficiency. To date, various kinds of anomaly-detection methodologies have been proposed. Among them, the Mahalanobis&ndash, Taguchi method, which simply describes the extent of a failure using the Mahalanobis distance, has been utilized to detect changes in the mechanical condition of facilities. However, the technique has not yet been applied to anomaly detection in a logistic operating system. In this paper, anomaly detection using the Mahalanobis&ndash, Taguchi method targeting the operational characteristics of a large-scale vertical transfer system is proposed and the validity of the method is discussed. The calculation used to produce proper values of the Mahalanobis distance is first developed based on simple excitation using a shaker. Mahalanobis distances under conditions of continuous operation of the target vertical transfer system are then obtained, distances for the system in an artificially damaged condition are compared to values produced under normal conditions, and any significant increase is used as an indicator of a problem. The applicability of the approach to a case involving continuous long-term operation is discussed using a simulation in which the target vertical transfer system is in continuous operation over a two-year period.

Zika virus remains a worldwide health threat, with outbreaks still occurring in the Americas. While mosquitos are the primary vector for the spread of the virus, sexual transmission of Zika virus is also a significant means of infection, especially in terms of passage from an infected to an uninfected partner. While sexual transmission has been documented in humans, and male-to-female transmission has been reported in mice, ours is the first study in nonhuman primates to demonstrate infection via vaginal deposition of Zika virus-infected semen. The latter is important since a recent publication indicated that human semen inhibited, in a laboratory setting, Zika virus infection of reproductive tissues. We also found that compared to the French Polynesian isolate, the Puerto Rican Zika virus isolate led to greater spread throughout the body, particularly in reproductive tissues. The American isolates of Zika virus appear to have acquired mutations that increase their efficacy., Zika virus (ZIKV) infection is now firmly linked to congenital Zika syndrome (CZS), including fetal microcephaly. While Aedes species of mosquito are the primary vector for ZIKV, sexual transmission of ZIKV is a significant route of infection. ZIKV has been documented in human, mouse, and nonhuman primate (NHP) semen. It is critical to establish NHP models of the vertical transfer of ZIKV that recapitulate human pathogenesis. We hypothesized that vaginal deposition of ZIKV-infected baboon semen would lead to maternal infection and vertical transfer in the olive baboon (Papio anubis). Epidemiological studies suggest an increased rate of CZS in the Americas compared to the original link to CZS in French Polynesia; therefore, we also compared the French Polynesian (FP) ZIKV isolate to the Puerto Rican (PR) isolate. Timed-pregnant baboons (n = 6) were inoculated via vaginal deposition of baboon semen containing 106 focus-forming units (FFU) of ZIKV (n = 3 for FP isolate H/PF/2013; n = 3 for PR isolate PRVABC59) at midgestation (86 to 95 days of gestation [dG]; term, 183 dG) on day 0 (all dams) and then at 7-day intervals through 3 weeks. Maternal blood, saliva, and cervicovaginal wash (CVW) samples were obtained. Animals were euthanized at 28 days (n = 5) or 39 days (n = 1) after the initial inoculation, and maternal/fetal tissues were collected. Viremia was achieved in 3/3 FP ZIKV-infected dams and 2/3 PR ZIKV-infected dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in CVW samples of 5/6 dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in lymph nodes but not the ovaries, uterus, cervix, or vagina in FP isolate-infected dams. ZIKV RNA was detected in lymph nodes (3/3), uterus (2/3), and vagina (2/3) in PR isolate-infected dams. Placenta, amniotic fluid, and fetal tissues were ZIKV RNA negative in the FP isolate-infected dams, whereas 2/3 PR isolate-infected dam placentas were ZIKV RNA positive. We conclude that ZIKV-infected semen is a means of ZIKV transmission during pregnancy in primates. The PR isolate appeared more capable of widespread dissemination to tissues, including reproductive tissues and placenta, than the FP isolate. IMPORTANCE Zika virus remains a worldwide health threat, with outbreaks still occurring in the Americas. While mosquitos are the primary vector for the spread of the virus, sexual transmission of Zika virus is also a significant means of infection, especially in terms of passage from an infected to an uninfected partner. While sexual transmission has been documented in humans, and male-to-female transmission has been reported in mice, ours is the first study in nonhuman primates to demonstrate infection via vaginal deposition of Zika virus-infected semen. The latter is important since a recent publication indicated that human semen inhibited, in a laboratory setting, Zika virus infection of reproductive tissues. We also found that compared to the French Polynesian isolate, the Puerto Rican Zika virus isolate led to greater spread throughout the body, particularly in reproductive tissues. The American isolates of Zika virus appear to have acquired mutations that increase their efficacy.

Early life microbiota has been linked to the development of chronic inflammatory diseases. It has been hypothesized that maternal vaginal microbiota is an important initial seeding source and therefore can have lifelong effects on disease risk. To understand maternal vaginal microbiota’s role in seeding the child’s microbiota and the extent of delivery mode-dependent transmission, we studied 700 mother-child dyads from the COPSAC2010 cohort.The maternal vaginal microbiota was evaluated in the third trimester and compared with the children’s fecal and airway microbiota.The vaginal samples displayed known stable community state types and only 1:6 changed over time. Only one OTU was significantly transferred to children’s fecal compartment, but an inflated number had positive transfer odds. A few taxonomic families showed early transfer enrichment to vaginally-born children, indicating vertical transfer, while half of the observed transfer effects were delivery mode independent enrichment with attenuating strength over time, indicating a common reservoir.

Human milk is a complex liquid that contains multifaceted compounds which provide nutrition to infants and helps to develop their immune system. The presence of secretory immunoglobulins (IgA), leucocytes, lysozyme, lactoferrin, etc., in breast milk and their role in imparting passive immunity to infants as well as modulating development of an infant's immune system is well-established. Breast milk miRNAs (microRNAs) have been found to be differentially expressed in diverse tissues and biological processes during various molecular functions. Lactation is reported to assist mothers and their offspring to adapt to an ever-changing food supply. It has been observed that certain subtypes of miRNAs exist that are codified by non-human genomes but are still present in circulation. They have been termed as xeno-miRNA (XenomiRs). XenomiRs in humans have been found from various exogenous sources. Route of entry in human systems have been mainly dietary. The possibility of miRNAs taken up into mammalian circulation through diet, and thereby effecting gene expression, is a distinct possibility. This mechanism suggests an interesting possibility that dietary foods may modulate the immune strength of infants via highly specific post-transcriptional regulatory information present in mother's milk. This serves as a major breakthrough in understanding the fundamentals of nutrition and cross-organism communication. In this review, we elaborate and understand the complex crosstalk of XenomiRs present in mother's milk and their plausible role in modulating the infant immune system against infectious and inflammatory diseases.

espanol?Pueden ser las grandes masas de agua sensores de cambio global? Como acumuladoras de agua y calor, algunas de sus caracteristicas termicas podrian verse alteradas por cambios hidrometeorologicos a medio y largo plazo y asi ser utilizadas como indicadoras de los efectos del cambio global sobre los ecosistemas fluviales. Este trabajo se centra en el estudio de la incidencia de cambio global (cambio climatico mas cambio de usos de agua y suelo) en la organizacion interna del lago de Sanabria, concretamente en su ciclo anual termico. Se estudia la existencia de tendencias temporales en el comportamiento termico del lago, donde se dispone de perfiles de temperatura del agua desde el ano 1986. Los analisis de datos incluyen las tecnicas estadisticas no parametricas del test de tendencia de Man-Kendall y la estimacion de pendiente de Sen para evaluar patrones estacionales y a largo plazo de variables hidrometeorologicas y termicas del lago. Los resultados principales indican que, sorprendentemente, el lago de Sanabria se esta enfriando globalmente, lo cual podria explicarse por un fortalecimiento de la termoclina y un descenso de la transferencia de calor al hipolimnion durante el periodo de estratificacion. Estos resultados contribuyen a entender y cuantificar la susceptibilidad de las masas de agua ibericas al cambio global EnglishAre large water bodies able to act as sensors of global change? As accumulators of water and heat, some of their thermal characteristics might be altered by long term (decadal) hydrometeorological changes and thus may be used as indicators of the effects of global change on fluvial ecosystems. This work focuses on the effect of global change (climate change plus water quantity and land use changes) in the internal organization of Sanabria Lake, specifically in its thermal annual cycle. The existence of temporal trends in the thermal behaviour of the lake was investigated based on the water temperature profiles that are available since 1986. Data analyses include the non-parametric Mann-Kendall trend test and the Sen slope estimate to evaluate long term and seasonal patterns of hydrometeorological and in-lake thermal variables. The main results surprisingly point to a net lake cooling that could be explained by a stronger thermocline and a weaker vertical transfer of heat to the hypolimnion during the stratification period. These results contribute to understand and quantify the effects of global change on Iberian freshwater bodies

The infant gut microbiome plays a fundamental role in innate and adaptive immune development in the perinatal and neonatal period. In the first months of life, the immune system and the infant’s microbiome will coevolve, initiating a bidirectional interplay ultimately resulting in competence and maturity. Exposures to maternal vertical transfer of microbes and breast milk drive colonization patterns and the developing immune system. Mechanisms demonstrating the seminal role of the microbiome in immune maturation are demonstrated in animal models and supported in longitudinal human studies of microbiome-associated immune-mediated health outcomes. Clarifying the cross talk between the microbiome and the immune system allows opportunities to leverage novel interventions to optimize health.

The mother’s vaginal microbiota represents the first microbes to which a child is exposed when delivered vaginally. However, little is known about the composition and development of the vaginal microbiota during pregnancy and birth. Here, we analyzed the vaginal microbiota of 57 women in pregnancy week 24, 36 and at birth after rupture of membranes but before delivery, and further compared the composition with that of the gut and airways of the 1-week-old child. The vaginal community structure had dramatic changes in bacterial diversity and taxonomic distribution, yet carried an individual-specific signature. The relative abundance of most bacterial taxa increased stepwise from week 24 of pregnancy until birth, with a gradual decline of Lactobacillus. Mother-to-child vertical transfer, as suggested by sharing, was modest, with the strongest transfer being for Clostridiales followed by Lactobacillales and Enterobacteriales. In conclusion, late gestation is associated with an increase in maternal vaginal microbiota diversity, and vaginal bacteria at birth only modestly predict the composition of the neonatal microbiota.

Project description Many hospitals have clinical areas accessible by lifts: in the event of fire or lift failure evacuation via stairs becomes necessary. Management of critical care patients during a lift failure offers challenges associated with a requirement for continuous monitoring, resuscitation and organ support using specialist equipment.1 Reviews of mass patient evacuations highlight the benefits of frequent simulation and involvement of external organisations on their success.2 Aintree University Hospital has developed a standard operating procedure (SOP) for the vertical transfer of critical care patients in the event of lift failure. Through an in-situ simulation exercise the aim was to test effectiveness of the new SOP and assess for latent errors in addition to offering a collaborative training opportunity for the hospital medical emergency team (MET) and external support agencies. Two simulations took place in locations vulnerable to lift failure. The MET were required to stabilise an unwell simulator patient and perform a vertical evacuation utilising the SOP. In each simulation an external emergency retrieval team assisted: North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) in scenario 1 and Liverpool Tactical Response Unit (TRU) in scenario 2. A debrief followed and participants provided feedback on perceived challenges. Summary of results Successful evacuations were achieved in scenario 1 and 2: 38 minutes and 37 minutes respectively. Table 1 outlines the human factors and system errors identified with recommendations for prevention. Discussion, conclusions and recommendations This project demonstrates safe resuscitation and efficient vertical evacuation of critical care patients is achievable, the SOP triggers the appropriate actions and recruitment of external support. However, the major barrier to its use is the lack of awareness amongst staff of its existence. This exercise revealed latent errors relating to equipment, staff training and our SOP was rectified, whilst also providing excellent educational opportunities, as success in this critical event is achieved through a well-rehearsed, coordinated team response. References Murphy CRF, Foot C. ICU fire evacuation preparedness in London: a cross-sectional study. British Journal of Anaesthesia 2011:106 (5); 695–698. Rojek A, Little M. Review Article: Evacuating hospitals in Australia: What lessons can we learn from the world literature? Emergency Medicine Australasia 2013: 25 (6); 496–502.

Using detailed administrative data from Virginia, this paper examines whether community college “vertical transfer” students who resemble “native four-year” students in their accumulated college-level credits and performance at their point of entry into the four-year sector perform equally well in terms of both academic and labor market outcomes. We compare matching strategies typically used in existing literature to one where we match vertical transfer and native four-year students based on prior credits earned, accumulative GPA, and the destination four-year institution, and find substantial differences in estimates based on different matching strategies. We also examine potential mechanisms underlying vertical transfer students’ relative performance at the four-year institution and in the labor market. The results show that vertical transfer students’ probability of baccalaureate attainment is comparable to that of similar native students attending the same four-year institution. However, when ...

This study examines the influence of first-year online enrollment on the long-term academic outcomes of postsecondary students. Using a nationally representative sample and propensity score weighting, I find that enrolling in some online courses is associated with lower odds of dropping out of college. Additional results reveal a positive relationship between enrolling in some online courses and sub-baccalaureate indicators of long-term academic success, such as earning an associate’s degree and transferring from a community college to a 4-year institution.

Summarization: Plastic pollution is presently one of the most widespread and minimally understood problems. Vast quantities of plastics that have entered the marine environment should be detected floating on the sea surface are seemingly missing from the global budget. A vertical transfer process should be able to explain the imbalance in mass, as well as the findings of buoyant plastics at the bottom of the sea. These processes are of paramount importance to modelling efforts on the fate of plastics and microplastics in the marine environment. In order to fill this gap and develop correlations that could be used in modelling activities, we have designed and performed a 300-day long field experiment to monitor the interactions between microplastics (pellets and films) and the marine environment for five types of plastic polymers. Fouling, changes in diameter, gravimetric weight and sinking velocity were monitored and the correlations between them were studied using principal component analysis (PCA). Density, fouling and sample form (strip or pellet) were found to greatly affect the sinking characteristics of the polymers, leading to an increase or decrease in the sinking velocity. Finally, mathematical expressions for the estimation of fouling attachment and the sinking velocity with respect to time for each type of plastic were determined from the experimental data. Presented on: Science of the Total Environment

Vertical transfer has been an increasingly prominent pathway to baccalaureate studies. However, few studies have investigated factors that predict academic performance and degree attainment of vertical transfer students in an Asian educational context. This study gathered data from the institutional dataset of 4133 records of vertical transfer students admitted between 2014 and 2017 in Hong Kong. Logistic regression analyses yielded that being female, first-semester GPA, number of courses per normal semester, and number of courses per summer semester were significant predictors of baccalaureate degree attainment. Linear regression analyses showed that gender (being female), pre-transfer GPA, post-transfer GPA difference, articulating within the same institution, proportion of credits for non- specialized courses, and number of courses per summer semester were associated positively with final GPA of those attaining a degree, while the presence of transfer shock and the number of credits required per year of study were negative predictors. Discussion and implications are presented.

Approximately 30% of students who enter the postsecondary education system do so through 2-year colleges. The majority of these students intend to earn a bachelor's degree, but most leave college before earning a diploma from a 4-year institution. The discrepancy between bachelor's degree aspirations and degree attainment rates of students who enter through 2-year colleges suggests that vertical transfer students—those who transfer from 2- to 4-year colleges—face unique obstacles to academic performance and retention that affect their likelihood of earning a bachelor's degree. Similar barriers exist for economically disadvantaged students, who may be more likely to enter the postsecondary education system through 2-year colleges. This scoping review synthesizes the literature on factors influencing economically disadvantaged vertical transfer students' academic performance in the first year posttransfer and retention between the first and second year posttransfer. Implications for 2- and 4-year institutions and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Purpose: This article examines the literature on the transfer function in American higher education, and it reviews three primary dimensions of transfer: (a) the transfer function and pathways, (b) transfer access and experiences, and (c) state transfer policy. Argument: This literature review engages core transfer concepts and we argue that the literature is dominated by the vertical transfer pathway, despite multiple transfer pathways and definitions. The research also suggests that students’ transfer experiences and outcomes are not equal, institutional cultures and policies are not designed to support diverse students, and the inadequate transfer structures and policies need to be reformed to improve transfer outcomes for students of color, low-income students, and first-generation students. Finally, we argue that the nature and distribution of state transfer policies is uneven and the impact of state transfer policies on student outcomes is mixed, so we know little about their efficacy. Conclusion: We conclude the article with a set of priorities for future transfer research that address gaps and limitations of the existing literature.

The interaction between vertical and lateral movements of soil constituents by tillage needs to be addressed to better understand the transfer processes of soil constituents on a hillslope. In this experiment, traditional tillage by consecutive hoeing during a few days and the cesium-137 (137Cs) tracing were performed in the Sichuan Basin, China to demonstrate direct effects of intensive tillage on the vertical redistribution of soil constituents and the interaction between vertical and lateral transfers of soil constituents. The changes in 137Cs residual rates showed that intensive downslope movement of soil by tillage occurred along the transect of slopes, and the lateral transfer of those soil constituents proceeded in the same direction as the soil movement by tillage. The vertical transfer patterns differed from one another for the upper, middle, and lower slope positions. At the upper slope positions, intensive tillage notably decreased the concentrations of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) in the whole soil profile. At the middle and lower slope positions, SOC concentrations in the surface soil layer (0–15 cm) markedly declined after intensive tillage, suggesting that the downslope movement of soil by tillage translocated the soil with low concentrations of SOC and TN derived from upslope towards the middle and lower slopes. The decreases in SOC and TN of the surface soil exerted an important impact on the underlying soil near the surface soil due to the vertical transfer of soil constituents by mixture effects of tillage. Significant changes in the depth distribution pattern of soil constituents by intensive tillage occurred close to the upslope and downslope boundaries of the field Our results revealed that the vertical movement of soil constituents interacted with their downslope movement under intensive tillage, which resulted in a chain transfer process of soil constituents: effects of the vertical transfer at all landscape positions on the lateral transfer along the transect of slopes, and conversely, effects of the lateral transfer on the vertical transfer.

Numerous studies have investigated the consequences of vertical transfer on students’ higher education outcomes in comparison to “native 4-year students”—those who went straight from high school into a bachelor’s program. However, the long-term labor market outcomes for vertical transfer students are understudied. Using nationally-representative data from the National Survey of College Graduates 2015, we estimate the relationship between starting in a community college (vs. at a 4-year college) and postcollege earnings and employment, in ways that correct for selection bias and overdispersion. We estimate a roughly 14% earnings disadvantage for baccalaureates who started at a 2-year rather than 4-year institution, regardless of college major. No effect was found on graduates’ employment chances.

The objective is to study the screening of Rhizopus sp inoculum, the utilization of this inoculum for a solid substrate soybean fermentation, to study the trial run of peeling machine and a fluidized bed reactor for the separation of soybean skin and soybean meat, to compare a manual cotton cloth bag filter and a manual rotary filter to separate soybean slurry, to run vertical technology transfer of a manual rotary filter into small scale tofu industry according to hygiene control and education skill training . The benefit of this research is to create a new business and to absorb manpower. The method used is a preparation of Rhizopus sp inoculum for fermentation. Trial run of the peeling machine and three phase fluidized bed reactor for the production of cleaned soybean. Cleaned soybeans are delivered to the production of a cake like fermented soybean , soy milk and tofu. Vertical transfer of technology of a manual rotary filter based on technometric approaches to soy milk and tofu industries. Education skill training was attended by 60 participants. The research results can be shown that the utilization of Rhizopus oligoporus and Rhizopus oryzae inoculum for soybean fermentation into a cake like fermented soybean can be accepted by the 60 panelists and local market. The trial run of peeling machine has a capacity of 30 kg per hour, the trial of three phase fluidized bed reactor can produce cleaned soybean after the total weight of soybean skin of about 35% from the total feed. Technology transfer of a manual rotary filter to the small scale of tofu industries can increase an efficiency of 66.37% for 25 minutes is better than a manual a cotton cloth bag filter with an efficiency of 62.62% for 36 minutes in tofu industry according to the hygiene control. This manual rotary filter can be scale-up into a larger scale. Education skill training was attended by 60 participants of a low income group people in rural areas in order to show how of the know how to do something better according to the hygiene control.

Based on the investigation data about Cd in Jiaozhou Bay in August, 1992, we calculated the horizontal increase amount and vertical diluted amount of Cd content in surface and bottom layers from the southwest waters of the bay to the west waters of the bay mouth, and set up the model block diagram of horizontal and vertical changes of Cd content. The results present that in August, the absolutely increase amount of Cd content in surface and bottom layers was 0.16-0.34μg/L, and the relatively increase amount of Cd content in surface and bottom layers was 51.51-66.66%. In the waters of southwest bay and west bay mouth, Cd content in surface and bottom layers had absolutely vertical diluted amount of 0.24-0.42μg/L, and its relatively vertical diluted amount was 63.63-75.00%. In the horizontal migration process of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers, the horizontal increase amount of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers reached a relatively high level from the southwest of bay to the west of bay mouth. It reveals that in the bay waters, in the parallel and opposite movement of the two currents, the current entering into the bay carried a high value of Cd content, and the Cd content migrated from the water with high content to the water with low content through the diffusion and migration of Cd content. Moreover, the migration direction of Cd content was perpendicular to the parallel movement direction of the two currents. In this way, the low-value Cd content in the outward current was increased, and at the same time, the vertical diffusion, migration and settlement of the high-value Cd content led to the increase of the Cd content in bottom layer in the outward current. In the process of vertical sediment of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers, the current had a low value of Cd content in the bay waters, and the vertical diluted amount of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers reached a high level; in the bay mouth waters, the current had high Cd content, but the vertical diluted amount of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers was also very high. In conclusion, the vertical diluted amount of Cd content in the surface and bottom layers kept a high value regardless of whether the current left the bay or whether the current carried high or low Cd content.

This paper analyses YouTube videos carrying on classic literature. One can establish a typology of the literary mediation that these productions operate, through a continuum going from the promotion on empathetic reading through BookTubing to the staging of a teacher-centered Literature course. Thus, these videos appear at first glance as a contemporary form of literary mediation, which is no longer based on the traditional vertical transfer of knowledge by parental or teaching authority figures. It is based on horizontal transfer of knowledge which appears as typical of juvenile culture. The relevance of using such videos as a teaching tool can then be questioned, whether it represents an attempt to promote the pleasure of reading, the acquisition of general knowledge or the learning of school contents and methodologies.

Background The majority of Eukaryotic genomes are composed of a small portion of stable (non-mobile) genes and a large fraction of parasitic mobile elements such as transposable elements and endogenous viruses: the Mobilome. Such important component of many genomes are normally underscored in genomic analysis and detailed characterized mobilomes only exists for model species. In this study, we used a combination of de novo and homology approaches to characterize the Mobilome of two non-model parasitoid wasp species. Results The different methodologies employed for TE characterization recovered TEs with different features as TE consensus number and size. Moreover, some TEs were detected only by one or few methodologies. RepeatExplorer and dnaPipeTE estimated a low TE content of 5.86 and 4.57% for Braconidae wasp and 5.22% and 7.42% for L. boulardi species, respectively. Both mobilomes are composed by a miscellaneous of ancient and recent elements. Braconidae wasps presented a large diversity of Maverick/Polintons Class II TEs while other TE superfamilies were more equally diverse in both species. Phylogenetic analysis of reconstructed elements showed that vertical transfer is the main mode of transmission. Conclusion Different methodologies should be used complementarity in order to achieve better mobilome characterization. Both wasps genomes have one of the lower mobilome estimates among all Hymenoptera genomes studied so far and presented a higher proportion of Class II than Class I TEs. The large majority of superfamilies analyzed phylogenetically showed that the elements are being inherited by vertical transfer. Overall, we achieved a deep characterization of the mobilome in two non-model parasitoid wasps improving our understanding of their evolution. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13100-018-0127-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

This paper presents numerical results of static structural stability analysis in development of a vertical transfer device of a PRT(Personal Rapid Transit) vehicle. The vertical transfer of a fully occupied vehicle operating on a road network is the first attempt, which is expected to contribute to overcome the limitations of conventional 2-dimensional operation mode. In particular, the vertical transfer apparatus designed based on vertical circulating conveyors is capable of continuous transfer without time delay so that it enables to accommodate a high traffic density. This system has been frequently used in a logistics field; however, it is essential to assess a structural integrity because an external force by a vehicle weight is exerted on the conveyors in the form of a concentrated load unlike a conventional logistic transport. In this study, prior to the production process, the structural performance of the pilot design in an early stage is numerically evaluated using the commercial finite element method (FEM) solver (i.e., Ansys

Turbulent fluxes of particle number and CO2 were analysed in Helsinki between July 2011 and June 2013. The fluxes were measured using the eddy covariance method in a dense city centre and suburban location next to a large road allowing the study of the mutual connections of the two fluxes and their dependencies between different high intensity road traffic areas. In the city centre, the median particle (Fp) and CO2 fluxes (Fc) were 0.18 × 109 m−2 s−1 and 9.8 μmol m−2 s−1, and at the suburban site 0.17 × 109 m−2 s−1 and 5.7 μmol m−2 s−1, respectively. Fc was larger in the city centre than at the suburban site whereas particles were emitted with a similar strength from a single large road as from the city centre. Fp had the largest net fluxes in winter and the smallest in summer, whereas seasonal variability in Fc was minor. Partly this can be explained by increasing particle emissions in colder temperatures. Also the different vertical transfer efficiency of the two scalars affects the different behaviour. This study demonstrates how the behaviour of two seemingly similar urban pollutants vary already at a kilometre scale and with different meteorological conditions.