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Ploidy and species range size or threat status have been linked to variation in phenotypic and phenological seed and seedling traits, including seed size, germination rate (speed) and seedling stature. There is surprisingly little known about the ecological outcomes of relationships between ploidy, key plant traits and the drivers of range size. Here we determined whether ploidy and range size in Pomaderris , a genus of shrubs that includes many threatened species, are associated with variation in seed and seedling traits that might limit the regeneration performance of obligate seeders in fire-prone systems. We experimentally quantified seed dormancy and germination processes using fire-related heat treatments and evaluated seedling performance under drought stress. We also examined the association of seed size with other seed and seedling traits. Polyploids had bigger seeds, a faster germination rate and larger and taller seedlings than diploids. There was a lack of any clear relationship between range size and seed or seedling traits. The ploidy effects observed for many traits are likely to be indirect and associated with the underlying seed size differences. These findings indicate that there is a higher potential competitive advantage in polyploid than diploid Pomaderris during regeneration, a critical stage in the post-fire environment. This insight to the regeneration phase may need to be considered when planning and prioritising management of threatened species., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Chan, Ooi and Guja.)

Background: Subtle progressive changes in speech motor function and cognition begin prior to diagnosis of Huntington's disease (HD)., Objective: To determine the nature of listener-rated speech differences in premanifest and early-stage HD (i.e., PreHD and EarlyHD), compared to neurologically healthy controls., Methods: We administered a speech battery to 60 adults (16 people with PreHD, 14 with EarlyHD, and 30 neurologically healthy controls), and conducted a cognitive test of processing speed/visual attention, the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) on participants with HD. Voice recordings were rated by expert listeners and analyzed for acoustic and perceptual speech features., Results: Listeners perceived subtle differences in the speech of PreHD compared to controls, including abnormal pitch level and speech rate, reduced loudness and loudness inflection, altered voice quality, hypernasality, imprecise articulation, and reduced naturalness of speech. Listeners detected abnormal speech rate in PreHD compared to healthy speakers on a reading task, which correlated with slower speech rate from acoustic analysis and a lower cognitive performance score. In early-stage HD, continuous speech was characterized by longer pauses, a higher proportion of silence, and slower rate., Conclusion: Differences in speech and voice acoustic features are detectable in PreHD by expert listeners and align with some acoustically-derived objective speech measures. Slower speech rate in PreHD suggests altered oral motor control and/or subtle cognitive deficits that begin prior to diagnosis. Speakers with EarlyHD exhibited more silences compared to the PreHD and control groups, raising the likelihood of a link between speech and cognition that is not yet well characterized in HD.

Wearing face masks (alongside physical distancing) provides some protection against infection from COVID-19. Face masks can also change how people communicate and subsequently affect speech signal quality. This study investigated how three common face mask types (N95, surgical, and cloth) affected acoustic analysis of speech and perceived intelligibility in healthy subjects. Acoustic measures of timing, frequency, perturbation, and power spectral density were measured. Speech intelligibility and word and sentence accuracy were also examined using the Assessment of Intelligibility of Dysarthric Speech. Mask type impacted the power distribution in frequencies above 3 kHz for the N95 mask, and above 5 kHz in surgical and cloth masks. Measures of timing and spectral tilt mainly differed with N95 mask use. Cepstral and harmonics to noise ratios remained unchanged across mask type. No differences were observed across conditions for word or sentence intelligibility measures; however, accuracy of word and sentence translations were affected by all masks. Data presented in this study show that face masks change the speech signal, but some specific acoustic features remain largely unaffected (e.g., measures of voice quality) irrespective of mask type. Outcomes have bearing on how future speech studies are run when personal protective equipment is worn.

Subtle motor and cognitive changes can manifest prior to diagnosis in many progressive neurological disorders. Most people with Huntington's disease (HD) develop dysarthria. Yet, how speech evolves, how the brain regulates speech in HD, and the clinical implications of these changes remain unclear. We reviewed existing literature on speech production in premanifest (PreHD) to symptomatic HD. A search of databases yielded 12 eligible studies. Nine of the twelve studies were included in the meta-analysis. Data suggest that speech in PreHD is characterized by impaired speech agility, phonatory function and speech rate. Over the disease course, speech gradually deteriorates across all subsystems of speech. Our findings indicate subtle changes in speech appear prior to a clinical diagnosis of HD. However, distinct patterns of decline and the magnitude of these deficits require further investigation. Our current understanding of speech impairment in HD relies on small cohort studies. Natural history studies documenting changes from premanifest to end stage may facilitate the development of speech as a marker of disease onset and treatment response., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Primary pulmonary angiosarcoma is extremely rare. It is often characterized by a clinically indolent course and delayed diagnosis. To date, there have been <20 cases reported. By far, little article correlates the clinical presentation, the imaging findings with the pathology. The authors present a case of middle-aged gentleman with primary pulmonary epithelioid angiosacroma which we initially thought as tuberculosis (TB) infection. A 60-year-old gentleman, with a history of 6 months on and off blood stained sputum, was admitted for an episode of massive hemoptysis. Urgent computed tomography (CT) bronchial arteriogram excluded any dilated bronchial artery. Patchy consolidation with multiple small centrilobular ground-glass nodules was noted at left upper lobe. The bronchoscopy was negative for malignancy and infection. Autoimmune workup was negative. Despite negative bronchoscopy, fungal, acid-fast bacilli culture and cytology, and anti-TB treatment were empirically given. However, his hemoptysis was unresolved. He was followed up with high-resolution CT after a month showed an enlarging left upper lobe mass surrounding by a ground glass halo. Left thoracotomy and left upper lobe lobectomy were performed. Epithelioid angiosacroma was found in histology. Radiologic and clinical-pathological findings were correlated in this paper., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.