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Abstract Luminophore stained micro- and nanobeads made from organic polymers like polystyrene (PS) are broadly used in the life and material sciences as luminescent reporters, for bead-based assays, sensor arrays, printable barcodes, security inks, and the calibration of fluorescence microscopes and flow cytometers. Initially mostly prepared with organic dyes, meanwhile luminescent core/shell nanoparticles (NPs) like spherical semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are increasingly employed for bead encoding. This is related to their narrower emission spectra, tuneability of emission color, broad wavelength excitability, and better photostability. However, correlations between particle architecture, morphology, and photoluminescence (PL) of the luminescent nanocrystals used for encoding and the optical properties of the NP-stained beads have been rarely explored. This encouraged us to perform a screening study on the incorporation of different types of luminescent core/shell semiconductor nanocrystals into polymer microparticles (PMPs) by a radical-induced polymerization reaction. Nanocrystals explored include CdSe/CdS QDs of varying CdS shell thickness, a CdSe/ZnS core/shell QD, CdSe/CdS quantum rods (QRs), and CdSe/CdS nanoplatelets (NPLs). Thereby, we focused on the applicability of these NPs for the polymerization synthesis approach used and quantified the preservation of the initial NP luminescence. The spectroscopic characterization of the resulting PMPs revealed the successful staining of the PMPs with luminescent CdSe/CdS QDs and CdSe/CdS NPLs. In contrast, usage of CdSe/CdS QRs and CdSe QDs with a ZnS shell did not yield luminescent PMPs. The results of this study provide new insights into structure–property relationships between NP stained PMPs and the initial luminescent NPs applied for staining and underline the importance of such studies for the performance optimization of NP-stained beads.

Abstract Background During the bloom season, the colonial cyanobacterium Microcystis forms complex aggregates which include a diverse microbiome within an exopolymer matrix. Early research postulated a simple mutualism existing with bacteria benefitting from the rich source of fixed carbon and Microcystis receiving recycled nutrients. Researchers have since hypothesized that Microcystis aggregates represent a community of synergistic and interacting species, an interactome, each with unique metabolic capabilities that are critical to the growth, maintenance, and demise of Microcystis blooms. Research has also shown that aggregate-associated bacteria are taxonomically different from free-living bacteria in the surrounding water. Moreover, research has identified little overlap in functional potential between Microcystis and members of its microbiome, further supporting the interactome concept. However, we still lack verification of general interaction and know little about the taxa and metabolic pathways supporting nutrient and metabolite cycling within Microcystis aggregates. Results During a 7-month study of bacterial communities comparing free-living and aggregate-associated bacteria in Lake Taihu, China, we found that aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic (AAP) bacteria were significantly more abundant within Microcystis aggregates than in free-living samples, suggesting a possible functional role for AAP bacteria in overall aggregate community function. We then analyzed gene composition in 102 high-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) of bloom-microbiome bacteria from 10 lakes spanning four continents, compared with 12 complete Microcystis genomes which revealed that microbiome bacteria and Microcystis possessed complementary biochemical pathways that could serve in C, N, S, and P cycling. Mapping published transcripts from Microcystis blooms onto a comprehensive AAP and non-AAP bacteria MAG database (226 MAGs) indicated that observed high levels of expression of genes involved in nutrient cycling pathways were in AAP bacteria. Conclusions Our results provide strong corroboration of the hypothesized Microcystis interactome and the first evidence that AAP bacteria may play an important role in nutrient cycling within Microcystis aggregate microbiomes. Video Abstract

Background: Lithium-ion batteries are globally prominent and extensively employed alternative energy sources with decisive applications. In depth understanding of influences of various charging and discharging cycles on electrode materials and life span of these batteries is critical as cycle-life and safety of lithium-ion batteries are closely related crystallinity of electrode materials. This study is a detailed investigation endeavor in observing the degree of damage to electrode materials under multiple charging and discharging cycles. Method: ology: A constant current-sinusoidal reflex charging method (CC-Sinusoidal) was implemented to charge commercial cathode Lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO2) electrodes and anode graphite electrodes in comparison to the conventional charging method of constant current-constant voltage (CC-CV). After 100, 300, and 500 cycles of charging and discharging, EIS, SEM, XRD, and Raman spectroscopies were used to compare the degree of electrode damage caused by different charging methods. Significant outcomes: The structure of positive LiCoO2 electrode of the battery was observed to be stable, with no significant change in both the charging methods after 500 cycles. The use of CC-CV charging method had caused severe damages to graphite electrode with generation of solid electrolyte interface (SEI) films. The CC-Sinusoidal charging method had maintained the electrode material in a relatively ideal state.

Climate change and other anthropogenic stressors have led to long-term changes in the thermal structure, including surface temperatures, deepwater temperatures, and vertical thermal gradients, in many lakes around the world. Though many studies highlight warming of surface water temperatures in lakes worldwide, less is known about long-term trends in full vertical thermal structure and deepwater temperatures, which have been changing less consistently in both direction and magnitude. Here, we present a globally-expansive data set of summertime in-situ vertical temperature profiles from 153 lakes, with one time series beginning as early as 1894. We also compiled lake geographic, morphometric, and water quality variables that can influence vertical thermal structure through a variety of potential mechanisms in these lakes. These long-term time series of vertical temperature profiles and corresponding lake characteristics serve as valuable data to help understand changes and drivers of lake thermal structure in a time of rapid global and ecological change.

Globally, lake surface water temperatures have warmed rapidly relative to air temperatures, but changes in deepwater temperatures and vertical thermal structure are still largely unknown. We have compiled the most comprehensive data set to date of long-term (1970-2009) summertime vertical temperature profiles in lakes across the world to examine trends and drivers of whole-lake vertical thermal structure. We found significant increases in surface water temperatures across lakes at an average rate of + 0.37 °C decade-1, comparable to changes reported previously for other lakes, and similarly consistent trends of increasing water column stability (+ 0.08 kg m-3 decade-1). In contrast, however, deepwater temperature trends showed little change on average (+ 0.06 °C decade-1), but had high variability across lakes, with trends in individual lakes ranging from - 0.68 °C decade-1 to + 0.65 °C decade-1. The variability in deepwater temperature trends was not explained by trends in either surface water temperatures or thermal stability within lakes, and only 8.4% was explained by lake thermal region or local lake characteristics in a random forest analysis. These findings suggest that external drivers beyond our tested lake characteristics are important in explaining long-term trends in thermal structure, such as local to regional climate patterns or additional external anthropogenic influences.

Abstract Luminescent semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are frequently used in the life and material sciences as reporter for bioimaging studies and as active components in devices such as displays, light-emitting diodes, solar cells, and sensors. Increasing concerns regarding the use of toxic elements like cadmium and lead, and hazardous organic solvents during QD synthesis have meanwhile triggered the search for heavy-metal free QDs using green chemistry syntheses methods. Interesting candidates are ternary AgInS2 (AIS) QDs that exhibit broad photoluminescence (PL) bands, large effective Stokes shifts, high PL quantum yields (PL QYs), and long PL lifetimes, which are particularly beneficial for applications such as bioimaging, white light-emitting diodes, and solar concentrators. In addition, these nanomaterials can be prepared in high quality with a microwave-assisted (MW) synthesis in aqueous solution. The homogeneous heat diffusion and instant temperature rise of the MW synthesis enables a better control of QD nucleation and growth and thus increases the batch-to-batch reproducibility. In this study, we systematically explored the MW synthesis of AIS/ZnS QDs by varying parameters such as the order of reagent addition, precursor concentration, and type of stabilizing thiol ligand, and assessed their influence on the optical properties of the resulting AIS/ZnS QDs. Under optimized synthesis conditions, water-soluble AIS/ZnS QDs with a PL QY of 65% and excellent colloidal and long-term stability could be reproducible prepared.

Abstract Background There is growing interest in retained introns in a variety of disease contexts including cancer and aging. Many software tools have been developed to detect retained introns from short RNA-seq reads, but reliable detection is complicated by overlapping genes and transcripts as well as the presence of unprocessed or partially processed RNAs. Results We compared introns detected by 8 tools using short RNA-seq reads with introns observed in long RNA-seq reads from the same biological specimens. We found significant disagreement among tools (Fleiss’ $$\kappa = 0.113$$ κ = 0.113 ) such that 47.7% of all detected intron retentions were not called by more than one tool. We also observed poor performance of all tools, with none achieving an F1-score greater than 0.26, and qualitatively different behaviors between general-purpose alternative splicing detection tools and tools confined to retained intron detection. Conclusions Short-read tools detect intron retention with poor recall and precision, calling into question the completeness and validity of a large percentage of putatively retained introns called by commonly used methods.

Measurement(s) nucleotide sequences Technology Type(s) Illumina Sequencing Factor Type(s) genotype: Dbx1-derived vs. non-Dbx1-derived neurons in the mouse preBötzinger complex • electrophysiological properties: Type-1 vs. Type-2 inspiratory preBötzinger complex neurons Sample Characteristic - Organism Mus musculus Sample Characteristic - Environment laboratory environment Sample Characteristic - Location contiguous United States of America

Based on original ethnographic and ethnobotanical research, we share how in the cosmology of Tanna, an island in Vanuatu's southernmost province of Tafea, the Sun is viewed as a living, interactive being. Our initial interviews explored knowledge and beliefs concerning individual plant species, then subsequent follow-up interviews further explored topics that emerged therefrom. The results of these interviews are a series of oral narratives of the mytho-historical past involving the Sun, and the description of contemporary practices which are influenced by the Sun. In traditional narratives, the Sun is both a creative and destructive force which is sometimes viewed as an active, personified character, and in other circumstances appears as an instrument created and utilized by greater powers. People from Tanna recount—and we adopt as a hypothesis—that the Sun's physical manifestation and role in the world has changed since the earliest days of its mythological creation, and that it remains an active player in Tanna's biocultural landscape within practices including time-reckoning, agriculture, and architecture. Through its relationships with humans and non-humans alike, the Sun ultimately shapes the cultural practices and even the landscape of Tanna. The nature of these relationships is changing as linguistic and cultural practices shift alongside people's relationship with the land, but the Sun remains a critical factor in lives and livelihoods of Tanna today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Morphological identification of digested prey remains from a generalist predator can be challenging, especially when attempting to match degraded remains to taxonomic keys. DNA techniques, whereby prey is sequenced and matched to large public nucleotide sequence databases, are increasingly being used to augment morphological identification. We used “metaBARFcoding” (DNA metabarcoding) to target a region of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) mitochondrial gene to identify prey in highly digested regurgitations from Christmas shearwaters Puffinus nativitatis at Hōlanikū (Kure Atoll). Metabarcoding was used to bulk‐process 92 water samples from regurgitations collected from 2009 to 2017, providing an overview of the seabird's diet. We additionally Sanger‐sequenced 100 prey items from 50 randomly chosen regurgitations to verify that metabarcoding characterized key components of the diet. The metabarcoding technique identified 87 unique taxa from 29 families of fish and squid, spanning diverse taxa, including reef‐associated, pelagic–oceanic, and mesopelagic species. Rare prey (frequency of occurrence ≤5% of samples) constituted 66% of the species richness, demonstrating the highly diverse diet of this generalist predator. Overall, 81% of the families detected in the contemporary diet were previously documented in Christmas shearwater diets from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Our results indicate that metabarcoding the COI region is useful in identifying a wide range of taxa from highly digested regurgitations, thus facilitating this approach to study seabird diets.

Spinal muscular atrophy with respiratory distress type 1 (SMARD1) is an autosomal recessive disorder that develops in infancy and arises from mutation of the immunoglobulin helicase μ-binding protein 2 (IGHMBP2) gene. Whereas IGHMBP2 is ubiquitously expressed, loss or reduction of function leads to alpha motor neuron loss and skeletal muscle atrophy. We previously developed a gene therapy strategy for SMARD1 using a single-stranded AAV9-IGHMBP2 vector and compared two different delivery methods in a validated SMARD1 mouse model. An important question in the field relates to the temporal requirements for this or any potential treatment. To examine the therapeutic window, we utilized our recently developed SMARD1 model, FVB/NJ-Ighmpb2nmd-2J, to deliver AAV9-IGHMBP2 at four different time points starting at post-natal day 2 (P2) through P8. At each time point, significant improvements were observed in survival, weight gain, and motor function. Similarly, treatment improved important hallmarks of disease, including motor unit pathology. Whereas improvements were more pronounced in the early-treatment groups, even the later-treatment groups displayed significant phenotypic improvements. This work suggests that an effective gene therapy strategy could provide benefits to pre-symptomatic and early-symptomatic individuals, thereby expanding the potential therapeutic window for SMARD1.

Measurement(s) temperature of water • temperature profile Technology Type(s) digital curation Factor Type(s) lake location • temporal interval Sample Characteristic - Environment lake • reservoir Sample Characteristic - Location global Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.14619009

Vietnamese Ukrainians are a largely unstudied identity group that has recently attracted attention due to the impacts of the Russo-Ukrainian War. Our study examines Vietnamese-Ukrainian bicultural identity as experienced by 10 university student refugees of the war in 2022–23. Researchers conducted semi-structured ethnographic interviews in which each participant examined identity formation experiences as second-generation Vietnamese Ukrainians. Participants also reflected upon the impacts to ethnic identity self-awareness that resulted from their unexpected return migration to Vietnam as student refugees of war. The cohort of study participants created a tight-knit Vietnamese-Ukrainian return diaspora in an environment conducive to self-reflection and exploration of their ongoing ethnic identity journeys. In our study, we argue that the ethnic identity formation of young Vietnamese Ukrainians relies on the active construction of intercultural personhood as an adaptation to transnational mobility and change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The HIV sentinel surveillance (HSS) serves to estimate the levels and trend of HIV prevalence among high-risk, bridge, and general population and monitors HIV management at national, state, and district levels. Data from HSS are valuable in understanding the risk factors associated with HIV transmission with particular demographic characteristics. Objectives: The objective was to analyze the sociodemographic profile of the pregnant mothers attending the antenatal care (ANC) clinics in Karnataka, in order to understand the dynamics of HIV within the general population in Karnataka. Materials and Methods: Study design: this was a cross-sectional study conducted using consecutive sampling method. Study setting: the surveillance was conducted at select antenatal clinics, in Karnataka, India, between January and March, in the years 2013, 2015, and 2017. Methodology: in total, 74,278 eligible pregnant women aged between 15 and 49 years, attending the sentinel sites for the first time during the surveillance period, were included in the study. Information on their sociodemographic characteristics and blood samples was collected. Results: HIV prevalence among the ANC clinic attendees has significantly declined, reaching a recent stabilization. The risk factors significantly associated with HIV among pregnant women were age, education, occupation, and marital status. HIV is highly concentrated in the northern and southern districts of Karnataka. Conclusion: Despite the declining trends of HIV prevalence in Karnataka, the epidemic is heterogeneous and concentrated within the state, calling for decentralized region-specific interventions.

Introduction: HIV Sentinel Surveillance (HSS) among pregnant women is a key indicator to estimate the HIV prevalence in the general population, as nearly 85% of HIV transmission in India is linked to the heterosexual route. Tracking the levels and trends of the HIV prevalence at state, regional, and district levels help to prioritize and facilitate a tailor-made intervention. Here, we analyze the region and district-wise levels and trends of HIV prevalence among pregnant women attending the antenatal clinics (ANC) from 2003 to 2019 in Tamil Nadu. Methods: Eleven rounds of HSS data collected from pregnant women in Tamil Nadu, from 2003 to 2019 were analysed. Consistent sites were grouped into four geographical regions (North, Central, West and South), a total of 67 sites including 33 urban 31 rural, and 3 private sites. Chi-square trend test used to find linear trends and spatial analysis used to understand the geographical distribution of HIV prevalence over the years. Results: In total, 2,77,444 blood samples were collected during HSS from 2003 to 2019. In 2019, the state HIV prevalence was 0.18 (95% CI: 0.13–0.23); region-wise prevalence was 0.21, 0.07, 0.32 and 0.12 in North, Central, West and South respectively. HIV prevalence in Tamil Nadu had significantly declined since 2003, which however, was not significant in all districts; with inter-district fluctuations. Conclusion: HIV interventions have to be strengthened in the districts with inconsistent trends, specifically the West region. This requires a more detailed analysis of region-specific contextual factors associated with the transmission risk.

While a student in Durban High School, the young Fernando Pessoa / Charles Robert Anon (afterwards Alexander Search) will make of English and American poetry his first “adverse genre” by borrowing its emotions and simplicity, at the same time intellectualizing a dark questioning of existence. Pessoa’s excursion through Shakespeare, Milton, and the romantics records the depth of his discontent through expressive dark themes. By 1909 these readings fade into the background of Pessoa’s radical skepticism and the dramatization of his intellectual pursuit of the absolute.