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Record phenological responses to climate change in three sympatric penguin species
Full text linkThe timing of breeding is an important aspect of any species' realised niche, reflecting adaptations to synchronise with food supplies, dilute predation, avoid competition and exploit seasonal fluctuations in resources. Breeding phenology is typically studied either through long‐term monitoring of focal populations (limiting the strength of inferences about species‐wide traits and trends) or, when conducted at a landscape level, using remotely visible traits (restricting most studies to plants). For the first time, this study demonstrates landscape‐scale measurement of vertebrate breeding phenology using a network of 77 time‐lapse cameras to monitor three sympatric penguin species across 37 colonies in the Antarctic Peninsula and Sub‐Antarctic islands. Camera temperature loggers showed penguin colony locations are warming up four times faster (0.3°C/year) than the continental average (0.07°C/year), already the second fastest‐warming area in the world. We analysed the start of the breeding season of Adélie, Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins at a sub‐continental scale between 2012 and 2022. The phenology of all three species advanced at record rates (10.2 ± 2, 10.4 ± 1.5 and 13 ± 4 days/decade, respectively). Different demographic trends as well as intra‐ and inter‐species differences in response to environmental change suggest niche‐based response differences between species. Phenological advances are causing niche separation to reduce. In this context, the Gentoo penguins' generalist and resident nature seems better suited to compete for space and resources than krill‐specialist Chinstraps and ice‐specialist Adélies. Synthesis: A decade of observation of the three pygoscelid penguins shows they are advancing their settlement phenology at record speeds in relation to climate change across the Antarctic Peninsula. These changes are species‐dependent, reflecting different vulnerabilities and opportunities depending on their niche and life‐history traits. In the long term, the trend towards earlier settlement risks increasing inter‐species competition, causing trophic and temporal mismatch, and reshaping community assemblages
Dataset-centric evaluation of federated intrusion detection models in IoT networks
Full text linkIntrusion detection systems (IDS) leveraging federated learning (FL) are increasingly deployed in Internet of Things (IoT) environments to address distributed data and privacy constraints. However, generalization remains unclear because most evaluations rely on a single dataset, which risks overfitting to site-specific traffic, label taxonomies, and non-IID client mixtures. This study provides a comprehensive dataset-centric evaluation of FL-based IDS across three contemporary IoT/IIoT datasets: Edge-IIoTset (2022), CIC-IoT2023, and TII-SSRC-23 (2023), that differ in devices, feature distributions, and attack families. We benchmark three FL aggregation algorithms (FedAvg, FedProx, FedNova) with two deep learning backbones (LSTM and Transformer) to assess detection accuracy, cross-environment generalizability, convergence behavior, and communication cost. Methodologically, we construct non-IID clients by device or application type, harmonize labels to a common family-level schema, align features to the intersection set, and evaluate three regimes: in-domain, cross-dataset, and a combined multi-dataset federation. Results show that federated models approach centralized performance in-domain, with macro-F1 up to 98% and accuracies in the 92-98% range. Transformers consistently exceed LSTM by ≈1-2% points in macro-F1 at comparable communication budgets. Cross-dataset tests expose substantial degradation, with up to 30 percentage-point macro-F1 loss when models face unseen environments, underscoring the need for diverse training coverage. Combined multi-dataset federation substantially restores transfer, yielding ≈90% macro-F1 across datasets in the harmonized family-level setting. Under heterogeneous clients, FedProx improves stability by reducing round-to-round variance, while FedNova achieves target accuracy in fewer rounds and lowers communication by ≈15-25% relative to FedAvg. These findings indicate a practical recipe for deployment: prioritize attack and environment diversity through combined-dataset FL, select Transformer backbones where feasible, and use FedProx or FedNova to stabilize training and reduce communication in bandwidth-constrained IoT settings
Accumulative experiences: navigating healthcare for recurrent vulvovaginal thrush from patient and clinician perspectives
Full text linkBackground: Existing research on recurrent vulvovaginal thrush primarily frames experiences through the lens of acute, episodic, and one-off cases. Studies are lacking which investigate the implications of embedding recurrent cases into acute frameworks. This paper explores how a condition that is usually seen as one-off transitions into something for patients and healthcare professionals to think about and act on as needing longer-term care. Aim: To understand patient and clinician perspectives on seeking and providing care for recurrent vulvovaginal thrush, and how these insights might improve healthcare experiences. Design and Setting: Qualitative study of patient experiences with recurrent vulvovaginal thrush, and healthcare professional perspectives about providing care. Method: Interviews with 32 patients and 25 healthcare professionals working in primary care and sexual health services in England. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Patient and public involvement informed study development and interpretation of results. Results: Patients and healthcare professionals agreed that acute, transient, and one-off cases of thrush could be self-managed effectively through pharmacy care. When thrush returned, persisted, or evolved, care needed to transition to a different approach, plan, and/or pathway was needed, however, integrating acute episodes could be complex. The themes highlight areas where the needs of people with recurrent vulvovaginal thrush diverged from acute cases, in terms of: (1) navigating disjointed health services, (2) recognising and responding to recurrence, (3) building ongoing healthcare relationships. Conclusion: Recurrent vulvovaginal thrush can be managed effectively in primary care, but requires approaches attentive to transitions, collaboration, and recognition of accumulative experiences
Lineages of a conspiracy: the ‘great replacement’ and demography
Full text linkThis article argues that the panic over the ‘great replacement’ of White populations in Europe, North America and Oceania needs to be understood in the context of demography as a science rooted in English and French settler-colonial projects. From William Petty to Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Robert Malthus, major formulations of populationism have been animated by the settler frontier and its double-sided promise of replenishment (for some) and annihilation (for others). ‘Excess’ populations have always been defined by their structural distance from Whiteness. Replacement theorists operate in this tradition. In a classic instance of anticipatory counterrevolution, they reassert a world-spanning hierarchy by imagining its dissolution. The supposed threat that racialised groups present to the imperial core therefore justifies their ongoing domination and virtually unlimited violence against them. Such weaponised pessimism reminds us that settlercolonial triumphalism has long been accompanied by deep anxiety about the prospect of defeat, incompletion and retribution. Only a careful assessment of demography as a science of global racial stratification can explain the enduring power of the idea of populations competing to the death in a zero-sum war for planetary space
Molecular and biochemical insights into dysregulation of glycosphingolipid metabolism in a mouse model of Lysosomal Free Sialic Acid Storage Disorder
Full text linkFree sialic acid storage disorder (FSASD) is caused by pathogenic variants in SLC17A5, which encodes the lysosomal sialic acid exporter, sialin. FSASD is characterized by the accumulation of lysosomal free sialic acid, leading to either a severe, childhood-lethal form or a more slowly progressive neurodegenerative disorder associated with the p.Arg39Cys (p.R39C) variant, i.e., Salla disease. While dysregulated glycosphingolipid (GSL) metabolism has been observed in cellular models of FSASD, this study provides the first in vivo biochemical dissection of GSL metabolism in a knock-in mouse model harboring the Slc17a5 p.R39C variant. We employed an integrated multi-modal approach, including sialic acid quantification, exploratory untargeted lipidomics, HPLC-based GSL profiling, bulk transcriptomics, and 4-MU-based lysosomal enzyme activity assays in brain and peripheral tissues (liver and kidney). Exploratory untargeted lipidomic screening revealed region-dependent lipid alterations, with more pronounced changes in the cerebellum than in the forebrain. Pathway-level analyses indicated enrichment of lipid classes related to sphingolipid and GSL metabolism. Targeted biochemical analyses demonstrated that several GSL species accumulate predominantly in the brain, with minimal changes in peripheral tissues, whereas glucosylceramide levels were significantly reduced in all brain regions analyzed. Transcriptomic profiling identified dysregulation of several genes involved in GSL and sialic acid metabolism. Enzyme activity assays corroborated the transcriptomic findings, demonstrating increased activity of several lysosomal glycohydrolases, including neuraminidase 1/3/4 and β-hexosaminidase. Collectively, these findings highlight dysregulated GSL metabolism as a prominent biochemical consequence of sialin deficiency in vivo and highlight its putative role in FSASD neuropathology
Checklists for emergencies in general practice: Participatory design of a quick reference handbook
Full text linkBackgroundEmergency presentations in General Practice (GP) are increasing, yet teams may go months without managing one. Cognitive aids such as checklists improve in-hospital emergency care, but existing tools are poorly suited to GP.AimTo identify common emergency presentations in GP and co-design bespoke checklists for safer management.Design & settingParticipatory design of GP-specific emergency checklists and usability testing in real clinical settings with multidisciplinary GP teams.MethodA multidisciplinary expert group used a mixed-methods participatory methodology to prioritise emergencies and develop checklists for a GP Quick Reference Handbook (GP-QRH). In-situ simulations in 29 GP practices informed iterative refinement of checklist content, layout and usability.ResultsThe final GP-QRH comprised 15 clinical emergency checklists, one checklist for non-clinical staff, a structured handover template and emergency debrief guidance. Testing the final version in 11 GP practices was uniformly positive and emphasised the importance of simple design, clear language, prominent prompts for escalation, and team training in checklist use.ConclusionWe have developed the first QRH for General Practice specifically tailored to primary care, co-designed with intended users. Its impact will depend on commitment to consistent use, local leadership and advocacy across GP networks. Further usability testing, evaluation of clinical impact and development of additional checklists are needed, but the GP-QRH has the potential to enhance emergency care and patient safety in UK general practice and internationally
The Luminosity Function and Clustering of H α Emitting Galaxies at z ≈ 4−6 from a Complete NIRCam Grism Redshift Survey
Full text linkWe study the luminosity function (LF) and clustering properties of 888 Hα emitters (HAEs) at 3.75 5 are more evolved, resembling the populations at 3.75 4 occurs in protoclusters. For the first time, we conduct the star formation-rate-limited three-dimensional clustering analysis at z > 4. We find that the filamentary geometry of protoclusters flattens the power-law shape of the HAE autocorrelation functions, with slopes much shallower than the typically assumed value. The autocorrelation function of field HAEs has a correlation length of r0=4.61−0.68+1.00h−1Mpc at z ≈ 4−5 and r0=6.23−1.13+1.68h−1Mpc at z ≈ 5−6. Comparing the observed correlation functions with the UniverseMachine simulation, we infer the dark matter (sub-)halo masses of HAEs to be log(Mh/M⊙)=11.0−11.2 at z ≈ 4−6, with a scatter of 0.4 dex
Response to Comments on ‘Hepatitis B Virus ( HBV ) Treatment Eligibility in the UK: Retrospective Longitudinal Cohort Data to Explore the Impact of Changes in Clinical Guidelines’
Full text linkRegion-dependent mechanical parameters in simulating cerebral atrophy
Full text linkBrain aging and atrophy involve complex multiscale factors of cellular degeneration and morphological changes. Although previous biomechanical models have advanced our understanding of brain shrinkage due to physiological and pathological aging, they often rely on simplified representations of tissue properties with limited regional differentiation. Building on established links between regional mechanics and neurodegeneration, we extend atrophy models by introducing detailed mechanical heterogeneity across 17 anatomically and mechanically distinct brain regions. Using region-specific experimental material properties, the model differentiates local mechanical behavior and reveals effects that homogeneous models overlook, providing new clinical insight into region-specific vulnerabilities. We then compare this heterogeneous model with progressively simplified variants to assess the impact of regional variability on brain deformation. While global and regional volume changes remain largely unaffected by mechanical heterogeneity, volume fractions of the corpus callosum and ventricles are sensitive to regional differences in material parameters. Analysis of the displacement field shows that mechanical heterogeneity significantly influences local displacement patterns within brain regions. Stress and stretch analyses reveal discrepancies between simplified and heterogeneous models, particularly in the corpus callosum, the internal brain structures, and some cortical regions. These results emphasize the importance of incorporating regional mechanical heterogeneity to enhance the accuracy of brain simulations and underscore the need for more comprehensive experimental characterization of brain tissue properties
Prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Full text linkBackgroundGestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a significant cause of adverse perinatal outcomes and major risk factor for type 2 diabetes in mother and child. Although global prevalence is estimated at 14%, the burden in sub-Saharan Africa remains unclear due to limited data and variable diagnostic protocols. This study aimed to generate a robust estimate of GDM prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa using methodologically comparable studies, and to assess subregional variation.MethodsWe systematically searched Embase, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Global Health, African Journals Online, and African Index Medicus from January 1990 to March 2025 for observational studies of pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa screened for GDM at ≥24 weeks' gestation using an oral glucose tolerance test and internationally recognized criteria. Studies using inconsistent, unclear or incomplete diagnostic protocols or self-reported data were excluded. Quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist. Prevalence estimates were pooled using random-effects meta-analysis of Freeman-Tukey-transformed proportions. Subgroup analyses were conducted by subregion, and mixed-effects meta-regression examined study-level moderators.FindingsFifty-nine studies met the inclusion criteria, of which 49 were selected for meta-analysis based on use of comparable diagnostic criteria. Studies represented 16 countries and involved 27,540 participants. The pooled GDM prevalence was 14.0% (95% CI, 11.6 to 16.5; prediction interval 1.9 to 34.3) with substantial heterogeneity (I²=97.1%). Prevalence varied across subregions: Southern Africa 10.2%, Eastern Africa 13.9%, Western Africa 15.1%, and Central Africa 18.0%. Meta-regression showed that small studies (InterpretationWhen comparable diagnostic protocols are applied, GDM prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa matches the global average, challenging perceptions of a lower regional burden. Subregional variability highlights the need for locally representative data. Standardized diagnostic criteria for epidemiological studies would improve comparability and inform targeted public health interventions