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In September 2020, a detailed report on Heritable Human Genome Editing was published. The report offers a translational pathway for the limited approval of germline editing under limited circumstances and assuming various criteria have been met. In this perspective, some three dozen experts from the fields of genome editing, medicine, bioethics, law, and related fields offer their candid reactions to the National Academies/Royal Society report, highlighting areas of support, omissions, disagreements, and priorities moving forward.

Cell replacement therapy is under development for dry age‐related macular degeneration (AMD). A thin membrane resembling the Bruch's membrane is required to form a cell‐on‐membrane construct with retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. These cells have been differentiated from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in vitro. A carrier membrane is required for cell implantation, which is biocompatible for cell growth and has dimensions and physical properties resembling the Bruch's membrane. Here a nanofiber electrospun poly‐L‐lactic acid (PLLA) membrane is tested for capacity to support cell growth and maturation. The requirements for laminin coating of the membrane are identified here. A porous electrospun nanofibrous PLLA membrane of ∼50 nm fiber diameter was developed as a prototype support for functional RPE cells grown as a monolayer. The need for laminin coating applied to the membrane following treatment with poly‐L‐ornithine (PLO), was identified in terms of cell growth and survival. Test membranes were compared in terms of hydrophilicity after laminin coating, mechanical properties of surface roughness and Young's modulus, porosity and ability to promote the attachment and proliferation of hESC‐RPE cells in culture for up to 8 weeks. Over this time, RPE cell proliferation, morphology, and marker and gene expression, were monitored. The functional capacity of cell monolayers was identified in terms of transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER), phagocytosis of cells, as well as expression of the cytokines, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and pigment epithelium‐derived factor (PEDF). PLLA polymer fibers are naturally hydrophobic, so their hydrophilicity was improved by pretreatment with PLO for subsequent coating with the bioactive protein laminin. They were then assessed for amount of laminin adsorbed, contact angle and uniformity of coating using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Pretreatment with 100% PLO gave the best result over 10% PLO treatment or no treatment prior to laminin adsorption with significantly greater surface stiffness and modulus. By 6 weeks after cell plating, the coated membranes could support a mature RPE monolayer showing a dense apical microvillus structure and pigmented 3D polygonal cell morphology. After 8 weeks, PLO (100%)‐Lam coated membranes exhibited the highest cell number, cell proliferation, and RPE barrier function measured as TEER. RPE cells showed the higher levels of specific surface marker and gene expression. Microphthalmia‐associated transcription factor expression was highly upregulated indicating maturation of cells. Functionality of cells was indicated by expression of VEGF and PEDF genes as well as phagocytic capacity. In conclusion, electrospun PLLA membranes coated with PLO‐Lam have the physical and biological properties to support the distribution and migration of hESC‐RPE cells throughout the whole structure. They represent a good membrane candidate for preparation of hESC‐RPE cells as a monolayer for implantation into the subretinal space of AMD patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magnificent catshark Proscyllium magnificum was described in 2004 based off five specimens collected in the Andaman Sea off Myanmar. It was originally allocated to the genus Proscyllium, but recent molecular analyses suggested it was more closely related to the harlequin catshark Ctenacis fehlmanni from the western Indian Ocean. This study incorporated meristics and external and internal morphology, together with molecular data to reclassify the magnificent catshark as Ctenacis magnificum and provides revised diagnoses for the genera Ctenacis and Proscyllium. Ctenacis consists of two allopatric Indian Ocean species, while Proscyllium is monotypic genus confined to the northwest Pacific. The revised Ctenacis can be distinguished from Proscyllium in having a broader and longer head (head length 21%–23% vs. 16%–18% of total length), distance between pectoral and pelvic bases shorter than head length (vs. greater than head length), more teeth (upper jaw with 80–86 vs. 46–62 tooth files), and a complex colour pattern of dark reddish‐brown blotches and saddles (vs. colour pattern of small black spots). A revised key to the genera of proscylliids and species of Ctenacis is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many of the egg cases of oviparous chondrichthyans remain unknown and undescribed in the literature. Egg cases can be a useful taxonomic character for species distinction and can be a valuable indicator of a species distribution in the field. In this study, the egg cases for 9 of the 10 nominal species of Heterodontus are described and compared, and the terminology and methodology for studying them are standardized. Heterodontus egg cases are distinct and easily identifiable from other oviparous egg cases by having a unique corkscrew shape formed by a pair of lateral keels spiraling along its length. Heterodontus egg cases range between 7.5 and 14.5 cm in egg case length, 3.7 and 5.8 cm in egg case width at midportion, and have 0.75–4 complete rotations. Morphometric measurements of egg cases from the nine species were subjected to multivariate analysis, with unique characters enabling distinction between them. Egg cases can be separated into three morphotypes: the “wide keels lacking tendrils” group, the “narrow keels with tendrils” group, and the “wide keels with tendrils” group. The egg case of Heterodontus ramalheira remains unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic monitoring (EM) is increasingly used to monitor catch and bycatch in wild capture fisheries. EM video data are still manually reviewed and adds to ongoing management costs. Computer vision, machine learning, and artificial intelligence-based systems are seen to be the next step in automating EM data workflows. Here we show some of the obstacles we have confronted and approaches taken as we develop a system to automatically identify and count target and bycatch species using cameras deployed to an industry vessel. A Convolutional Neural Network was trained to detect and classify target and bycatch species groups, and a visual tracking system was developed to produce counts. The multiclass detector achieved a mean average precision of 53.42%. Based on the detection results, the visual tracking system provided automatic fish counts for the test video data. Automatic counts were within two standard deviations of the manual counts for the target species and most times for the bycatch species. Unlike other recent attempts, weather and lighting conditions were largely controlled by mounting cameras under cover. La surveillance electronique (SE) est de plus en plus utilisee pour surveiller les prises et prises accessoires dans les peches de capture. Les donnees video de SE sont toujours traitees manuellement, rehaussant les cots de gestion. Des systemes bases sur la vision artificielle, l'apprentissage automatique et l'intelligence artificielle devraient constituer la prochaine etape de l'automatisation des flux de travail associes aux donnees de SE. Nous decrivons certains des obstacles que nous avons rencontres et des approches empruntees dans la mise au point d'un systeme d'identification automatique et de denombrement d'individus d'especes cibles et d'especes accessoires qui fait appel a des cameras deployees sur un navire commercial. Un reseau neuronal a convolution a ete forme pour detecter et classer des groupes d'especes cibles et accessoires, et un systeme de suivi visuel a ete mis au point pour produire des decomptes. La valeur moyenne de la precision moyenne produite par le detecteur a classes multiples est de 53,42 %. A la lumiere des resultats de detection, le systeme de suivi visuel a produit des denombrements automatiques de poissons pour les donnees video experimentales. Les valeurs produites par ces denombrements automatiques sont dans la fourchette de deux ecarts-types des valeurs obtenues manuellement pour les especes cibles et, la plupart du temps, pour les especes accessoires. Contrairement a d'autres tentatives recentes, l'installation des cameras sous couvert a permis en bonne partie de controler les conditions meteorologiques et d'eclairage. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction On-vessel cameras that record fishing operations and catch, known as electronic monitoring (EM), has expanded as costs have declined (van Helmond et al. 2020). EM has the potential to [...]

Fifty years ago poetry was a key element in the English programme in most secondary schools in New Zealand. Today many teachers avoid teaching poetry for several reasons, one of these being the nature of the assessment of the subject, English, by the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) set up by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA). The outcome has been the setting up of a cycle of disadvantage whereby many students may never have the opportunity to study or write a poem in school. Such students leave school without having encountered literary study at its most intense and refined, which employs the most concentrated use of language and gives valuable access to the imaginative dimension of language. These students will, in their turn, as educators of the next generation, fail to transmit these qualities to others. (Contains 1 table and 24 footnotes.)

Key Clinical Message: This case suggests using dual orexin receptor antagonists to treat alcohol use disorder and comorbid sleep disorders may be effective, commencing treatment in withdrawal and continuing it to prevent relapse. Effective medications for the treatment of alcohol use disorder are limited. This is partially due to the heterogenous nature of the symptomatology associated with alcohol use disorder and the abundance of presenting comorbidities. One common, and often overlooked, symptom that occurs during withdrawal of alcohol use is sleep disruption. Here, we report a case study of a participant with comorbid alcohol use disorder and insomnia. This participant was treated with a dual orexin receptor antagonist, suvorexant (Belsomra®), currently approved to treat insomnia. We demonstrate improvements in alcohol cravings, physical and psychological health, and sleep outcomes with treatment. These data support abundant preclinical and emerging clinical data in this space. The findings from this case report highlight the potential for suvorexant to treat comorbid alcohol use disorder and insomnia with fully powered, randomized controlled trials moving forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Areas of importance to Southern Ocean skates are poorly defined. Here, we identify a deepwater skate egg case nursery in a discrete location at ~460 m depth off Cape Adare in the Southern Ocean. This is the first confirmed observation of a skate nursery area in the Ross Sea and only the second observation for the Southern Ocean. The morphology and size of the egg cases were consistent with the genus Bathyraja and most likely belong to the Bathyraja sp. (cf. eatonii). The nursery occurs within the "no take" General Protection Zone of the Ross Sea region marine protected area, where commercial fishing is prohibited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The British Standards Institution's Publicly Available Specification 440 (PAS 440) provides a Responsible Innovation Framework (RIF) that companies can use to continuously monitor the societal, environmental and health benefits and risks of their innovations, as well as relevant changes to the supply chain and regulations. PAS 440 is intended to help companies achieve the benefits of innovation in a timely manner and avoid any potential harm or unintended misuse of a new product, process or service. Here, the authors have applied the PAS 440 RIF to a novel single‐cell protein (SCP) animal feed ingredient taking into consideration the perspectives of the value chain partners (VCPs), companies and laboratories involved in an Innovate UK research project. The authors' findings show how VCPs can use PAS440 to demonstrate that they are innovating responsibly. Using this approach to responsible innovation along the value chain—from manufacturing scale‐up, through regulatory approval, to incorporation in animal feed and from there to food on supermarket shelves—can support the development of innovations that contribute to the economic and environmental sustainability of the animal feed sector. The authors conclude that the PAS 440 Guide can facilitate the progress of a new product throughout a value chain and contribute to coordinating responsible behaviour among companies involved in the value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trawl surveys within and surrounding two northwestern Australian marine parks revealed banded sand catsharks Atelomycterus fasciatus (family Atelomycteridae) taking refuge within large sponges of the family Irciniidae (Demospongiae: Dictyoceratida) and the genus Agelas (Demospongiae: Agelasida: Agelasidae). Five sponges contained a total of 57 A. fasciatus, comprising both sexes and both immature and mature individuals ranging from 102 to 390 mm total length (TL). In the same surveys, only five A. fasciatus were captured unassociated with sponges, suggesting that sponges are an important microhabitat for A. fasciatus and may provide a daytime refuge from predators. A southerly range extension is also reported for this species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Beginning with a full text search for the term 'provincialism' across all entries in the OED Online , this article tracks 'provincialism' through the digitized fiction of the nineteenth century, eavesdropping on the ways in which the term was used in a dataset of references drawn from 165 nineteenth-century novels brought together from the British Library 19th Century Collection and the Hathi Trust Digital Library. The focus is not on a close reading of a small number of novels, a novel subgenre, or iterations of a single novel, but on a close reading of multiple short, references to the term 'provincialism' drawn from a large number of nineteenth-century digitized novels. Attention is concentrated on the textually small, the fleeting yet potent uses of the term deployed by nineteenth-century novelists writing in a mass cultural medium with a local and global reach. The findings offer up a relational and multidimensional picture of the term aggregated from the textually small, as it plays out in relation to class, gender, the city, the four nations of the UK, the British Empire and the wider world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]