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Investigating the impact of the spatially heterogeneous surface dust cover on Martian Global Dust Event occurrence [Data and Software]
No full textThis dataset contains data and pieces of software for performing fully interactive simulations of the Martian dust cycle with the Mars Planetary Climate Model in a new way. It implements a relationship between the parametrization of vertical dust emission and the surface dust cover on Mars. Use only for test purposes and future model development
Shades of empire: Evidence from Swedish and Polish–Lithuanian partitions in the Baltics
No full textIn this study, we explore the long-run effects of Swedish and Polish–Lithuanian imperial legacies in the Baltic region. Using a robust regression discontinuity design, we identify persistent differences in socio-economic development across the South Livonia–Courland and the South Livonia–Lettgallia borders that emerged as a result of the Altmark Truce (1629) between Sweden and Poland–Lithuania. We find that there is a positive post-imperial persistence of the Swedish legacy that explains modern Baltic development. Our results are robust to the RD estimation of the post-1629 Swedish–Swedish border between North Livonia and Estland, the Pale of Settlement, spatial noise, placebo outcomes, and the introduction of a quadratic polynomial, as well as different bandwidths. Higher historical shares of Lutherans, Germans, and landowners may predict higher levels of contemporary socio-economic development in the Swedish partition of South Livonia than in the Polish–Lithuanian partitions of Courland and Lettgallia
Supramolecular Carbohydrate Assemblies with Tunable Glycan Surfaces
No full textThe self-assembly of molecular building blocks into ordered supramolecular structures enables the creation of nanomaterials that can display ligands on their surfaces with molecular precision. However, many of these supramolecular scaffolds face challenges in incorporating bulky or hydrophilic ligands, such as carbohydrates. This issue often requires the co-assembly of ligand-containing blocks with non-functionalized ones, diluting ligand presentation and compromising their precise spatial arrangement. Herein, we present carbohydrate oligomers that assemble into supramolecular nanomaterials featuring a molecularly controlled, dense presentation of carbohydrate ligands on their surfaces. This modular system accommodates a variety of carbohydrate ligands while maintaining consistent bulk material properties. Using this approach, we have engineered a series of supramolecular hydrogels, whose nanostructure displays specific carbohydrate residues with high density that act as biological cues to influence the morphology of Candida albicans
Homologies and modelling in Colombian South–South security cooperation
No full textThis article analyses Colombian South–South security cooperation. Drawing upon empirical research findings and by focusing on Colombian security engagements with other Latin American countries in the realm of military transformation, we identify the role of epistemological constructs as key drivers of Colombian South–South security cooperation. We demonstrate that Colombian policy and security actors intentionally created comparability between their own country and its security challenges, and the conditions existing in other countries of the region. This portrayal of idiosyncratic (in)security features as shared attributes across otherwise-different country contexts enables the transfer of security models rooted in Colombia’s expertise and experience. We show how such security-driven homologisation efforts enabled Colombian security practitioners to navigate international hierarchies, particularly unequal US–Colombian relations in their favour, allowing them to secure continued US support and position Colombian security expertise as a blueprint for addressing contemporary security challenges across the region and beyond
Understanding bioreceptivity of concrete: realistic and accelerated weathering experiments with model subaerial biofilms
No full textVertical greening systems are a promising solution to the increasing demand for urban green spaces, improving environmental quality and addressing biodiversity loss. This study facilitates the development microbially greened algal biofilm facades, which offer a low maintenance vertical green space. The study focuses on concrete as a widely used building material and explores how physical surface characteristics impact its bioreceptive properties. Concrete samples, produced from the same mix but differing in surface structure, were subjected to a laboratory weathering experiment to assess their bioreceptivity. A novel inoculation method was employed, involving a single initial inoculation with either alga ( Jaagichlorella sp.) alone, or a model biofilm consisting of a combination of the alga ( Jaagichlorella sp.) with a fungus ( Knufia petricola ). The samples underwent four months of weathering in a dynamic laboratory setup irrigated with deionized water to observe subaerial biofilm attachment and growth. The formation of subaerial biofilms was monitored with high resolution surface imaging, colorimetric measurements and Imaging Pulse Amplitude Modulated Fluorometry (Imaging PAM-F), with Imaging PAM-F proving the most effective. Statistical analysis revealed that by impacting surface pH value and water retention capability, surface structures significantly influence microbial growth and that the concrete’s bioreceptivity can be influenced through thoughtful design of the materials surface. The inoculation of algae combined with a fungus facilitated the formation of a stable subaerial biofilm, enabling algae to colonize a surface structure that it could not colonize alone. This finding highlights the importance of modelling synergistic interactions present in natural biofilms
Unlocking the Zn-enriching potential of industrial yeast strains—an experimental journey from metal analysis to proteomics
No full textNutritional supplements such as trace element-enriched yeasts are becoming increasingly popular to overcome the worldwide problem of zinc (Zn) deficiency. Unlike selenium-enriched yeast, which is already authorized in the European Union, Zn-enriched yeasts (ZnY) have not yet been approved for food purposes in the European Union, as their evaluation is still ongoing, demanding more comprehensive data regarding the Zn species present in ZnY. This study screens ten different industrial yeast strains regarding their Zn-enrichment quota, with further characterization of selected strains using spectroscopic and proteomic approaches. Microfermentation experiments on the industrial yeasts showed Zn levels spanning 0.06–51 pg/cell. Large-scale fermentation in bioreactors was carried out with two strains excelling in either biomass or Zn accumulation. A combination of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and various spectroscopic methods confirmed the Zn enrichment, while suggesting that fractions of the Zn accumulated on the cell surface, with simultaneously high values of phosphorus being present. Speciation via X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) analyses revealed that Zn species are transformed and Zn is coordinated to P-O-ligands and to amino acid ligands in both strains. Proteomic analysis showed that ZnY cells moved from a Zap1-governed Zn balance to an intracellular excess response, implying cellular Zn uptake. This study demonstrates that, in a Zn-excess medium, industrial yeast strains exhibit variability in Zn-accumulation capacity, cellular Zn-localization, and regulatory responses involving the expression of Zn-binding proteins. The presented findings contribute to optimizing industrial fermentation processes for producing Zn-rich yeast biomass and enhance the understanding of Zn regulation in yeast, aiding in the approval of Zn-enriched yeasts for supplements and novel food applications.
Key points
• Zn enrichment in yeasts is strongly time and strain dependent • Zn proteome changes under Zn excess suggest that Zn is partly internalized in the yeast cells • Beside proteins, phosphorous compounds seem to be Zn-binding ligands in Zn-enriched yeast
Graphical abstrac
A Historical Analysis of Welfare State Medicine in Norway in the Late 20th Century
No full textThis medical historical habilitation thesis analyzes unpublished and publishes sources, medical records, and oral history interviews to complicate a notion of health activism, clinical routines, and bureaucratic practices as discrete cultures with separate thought styles. The welfare state cases of HIV/AIDS policy and trans medicine show that subcultures and clinical cultures, lay and professional expertise have converged and shaped each other in reciprocal ways. The thesis develops the concepts of “amphibious activism” and “welfare state medicine” to characterize this dialectical relationship as a particular way of thinking and practicing medicine in the clinic and in the bureaucracy in the late twentieth century
High-resolution in situ imaging reveals size-specific moonlight responses in zooplankton diel vertical migration
No full textLight is the primary cue driving zooplankton diel vertical migration (DVM), a strategy that balances predation risk with resource access. However, DVM is often oversimplified, with limited consideration of how light-driven risks and resource needs vary across taxa and life stages. This simplification is partly due to constraints on collecting high-resolution, size-resolved data —especially at night, when subtle shifts in illumination reshape nocturnal risk landscapes. To overcome these limitations, we deployed a high-resolution in situ modular Deep-focus Plankton Imager and an image-recognition approach to quantify fine scale DVM and body sizes of Cladocerans and Copepods in Lake Stechlin, Germany. Data was collected from day into night and across moonrise and was compared with environmental data from vertical profiling sondes. Typical DVM patterns emerged, with deeper daytime distributions, however, moonlight introduced additional behavioural complexity: larger individuals avoided illuminated layers, likely managing predation risk, while smaller individuals moved into these layers, possibly exploiting foraging opportunities and reduced risk. These light-mediated shifts were further shaped by ecological conditions; copepods tracked food-rich layers regardless of light levels at night, while cladocerans showed light-dependent responses to both temperature and food, such that light caused them to avoid otherwise favourable (warm, food-rich) layers. Our approach provides new insight into how zooplankton navigate nocturnal lightscapes, revealing size- and taxon-specific strategies. By establishing size-dependent responses to natural moonlight, this work provides a crucial baseline for predicting how artificial light at night may restructure zooplankton communities and destabilize freshwater food webs
“It’s sometimes a tightrope walk…” – Exploring dyadic coping arrangements between young adults with chronic conditions and their peers (friends or partners) in interviewing both sides
No full textLiving with long-term conditions requires adaptation and coping. It is unclear how young adults – often still in unstable social relationships – and their partners or friends cope with the challenges of a long-term condition. Our study aimed to explore how young adults and their friends or partners arrange themselves with this situation. In a comparative design, we interviewed 24 young adults with differing long-term conditions and 30 of their friends or partners in episodic interviews, which we analyzed with thematic coding. We identified four patterns of dyadic arrangements of coping for both sides: Joint Management and Supportive Arrangement show congruence and cooperation in dealing with the condition. Divergence and Diffusiveness illustrate conflicts and tensions. Our results show the importance romantic partners or close friends can have for dyadic disease management in young adulthood and suggest including friends and partners in training courses on long-term conditions and in professional support