3,178 research outputs found
Interview with Florian Maximilian Meier
No full textInterview with Florian Maximilian Meier by Chiara Somajni, Iolanda Pensa and Giovanni Profeta, 3 June 2025, CC BY 4.0
Does reduced precipitation trigger physiological and morphological drought adaptations in European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.)? Comparing provenances across a precipitation gradient
No full textGlobal warming and associated decreases in summer rainfall may threaten tree vitality and forest productivity in many regions of the temperate zone in the future. One option for forestry to reduce the risk of failure is to plant genotypes which combine high productivity with drought tolerance. Growth experiments with provenances from different climates indicate that drought exposure can trigger adaptive drought responses in temperate trees, but it is not well known whether and to what extent regional precipitation reduction can increase the drought resistance of a species. We conducted a common garden growth experiment with five European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) populations from a limited region with pronounced precipitation heterogeneity (816–544 mm year−1), where phylogenetically related provenances grew under small to large water deficits. We grew saplings of the five provenances at four soil moisture levels (dry to moist) and measured ∼30 morphological (leaf and root properties, root : shoot ratio), physiological (leaf water status parameters, leaf conductance) and growth-related traits (above- and belowground productivity) with the aim to examine provenance differences in the drought response of morphological and physiological traits and to relate the responsiveness to precipitation at origin. Physiological traits were more strongly influenced by provenance (one-third of the studied traits), while structural traits were primarily affected by water availability in the experiment (two-thirds of the traits). The modulus of leaf tissue elasticity ϵ reached much higher values late in summer in plants from moist origins resulting in more rapid turgor loss and a higher risk of hydraulic failure upon drought. While experimental water shortage affected the majority of morphological and productivity-related traits in the five provenances, most parameters related to leaf water status were insensitive to water shortage. Thus, plant morphology, and root growth in particular, did respond to reduced water availability with higher phenotypic plasticity than did physiology. We conclude that beech provenances exposed to different precipitation regimes have developed some genotypic differences with respect to leaf water status regulation, but these adaptations are associated with only minor adaptation in plant morphology and they do not affect the growth rate of the saplings
Investigation of zinc oxide particles in cosmetic products by means of centrifugal and asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation
No full textThe dimensional characterization of insoluble, inorganic particles, such as zinc oxide ZnO, dispersed in cosmetic or pharmaceutical formulations, is of great interest considering the current need of declaring the possible presence of nanomaterials on the label of commercial products.This work compares the separation abilities of Centrifugal- and Asymmetrical Flow Field-Flow Fractionation techniques (CF3 and AF4, respectively), equipped with UV-vis, MALS and DLS detectors, in size sorting ZnO particles, both as pristine powders and after their extraction from cosmetic matrices.ZnO particles, bare and superficially modified with triethoxycaprylyl silane, were used as test materials. To identify the most suitable procedure necessary to isolate the ZnO particles from the cosmetic matrix, two O/W and two W/O emulsions were formulated on purpose. The suspensions, containing the extracted particles ZnO, were separated by both Field-Flow Fractionation (FFF) techniques to establish a common analysis protocol, applicable for the analysis of ZnO particles extracted from three commercial products, sold in Europe for the baby skin care.Key aspects of this study were the selection of an appropriate dispersing agent enabling the particles to stay in stable suspensions (>24. h)and the use of multiple detectors (UV-vis, MALS and DLS) coupled on-line with the FFF channels, to determine the particle dimensions without using the retention parameters. Between the two FFF techniques, CF3 revealed to be the most robust one, able to sort all suspensions created in this work
Uncoupling of Behavioral and Metabolic Twenty-Four-Hour Rhythms in Reindeer (Current Biology, Meier et al. 2024): Actigraphy data
No full text<p>Raw reindeer actigraphy data collected and analysed in the course of the study "Uncoupling of Behavioral and Metabolic Twenty-Four-Hour Rhythms in Reindeer" (Current Biology, Meier et al. 2024). Details on data processing and plotting can be found in the published article. Further information and codes can be requested from the first author Sara A. Meier.</p>
Recent Climate Warming-Related Growth Decline Impairs European Beech in the Center of Its Distribution Range
No full textIncreasing summer droughts represent a major threat for the vitality and productivity of forests in the temperate zone. European beech, the most important tree species of Central Europe’s natural forest vegetation, is known to suffer from increased drought intensity at its southern distribution limits, but it is not well known how this species is affected in the center of its distribution range in a sub-oceanic climate. We compared tree-ring chronologies and the climate sensitivity of growth (MS) in 11 mature beech stands along a precipitation gradient (855–576 mm y−1) on two soil types with contrasting water storage capacity (WSC) in northwest Germany to test the hypotheses that recent warming is impairing beech growth also in the center of its distribution below a certain precipitation limit, and stands with low soil WSC are more susceptible. We found a threshold of about 350 mm of mean growing season precipitation below which basal area increment (BAI) showed a consistent decline since the 1970s. The frequency of negative pointer years and MS were highest in low-precipitation stands on sandy soil, but both parameters have increased during the last decades also in the moister stands. The factor with largest impact on BAI was precipitation in June, in combination with high mid-summer temperatures. Contrary to our hypothesis, the edaphic effect on growth dynamics was surprisingly small. We conclude that global warming-related growth decline is affecting European beech even in the center of its distribution below a hydrological threshold that is mainly determined by mid-summer rainfall
Zeitverwendung in der Familie
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Editorial
Michaela Kreyenfeld & Florian Schulz: Zeitverwendung in der Familie. Einleitung in das Schwerpunktthemenheft
Nina Klünder & Uta Meier-Gräwe: Caring, Cooking, Cleaning – repräsentative Zeitverwendungsmuster von Eltern in Paarbeziehungen
Sabine Walper & Shih-cheng Lien: Routinebetreuung und interaktive „Quality Time“: Was beeinflusst, wieviel Zeit Väter wie mit ihren Kindern verbringen?
Christina Boll & Andreas Lagemann: Wie die Eltern, so die Kinder? Ähnlichkeiten in der Zeitverwendung auf bildungsnahe Aktivitäten
Iris Gönsch, Anja Liersch & Nora Merkel: Kulturelle und musisch-ästhetische Bildung: Wie viel Zeit investieren Familien?
Andrea Buschner, Ursula Adam & Florian Schulz: Relative education, parenthood, and couples’ division of paid wor
Jean-Pierre Jacob, Fabrizio Sabelli, Crettaz, François Partant, Gilbert Rist, Adràs November, Claude Auroi, Gilbert Blardone, Ronald Bugge, Florian Meier, Jacques Grinevald, Crise et chuchotements: interrogations sur la pertinence ďun concept dominant
No full textLatouche Serge. Jean-Pierre Jacob, Fabrizio Sabelli, Crettaz, François Partant, Gilbert Rist, Adràs November, Claude Auroi, Gilbert Blardone, Ronald Bugge, Florian Meier, Jacques Grinevald, Crise et chuchotements: interrogations sur la pertinence ďun concept dominant. In: Tiers-Monde, tome 27, n°105, 1986. p. 227
Jean-Pierre Jacob, Fabrizio Sabelli, Crettaz, François Partant, Gilbert Rist, Adràs November, Claude Auroi, Gilbert Blardone, Ronald Bugge, Florian Meier, Jacques Grinevald, Crise et chuchotements: interrogations sur la pertinence ďun concept dominant
No full textLatouche Serge. Jean-Pierre Jacob, Fabrizio Sabelli, Crettaz, François Partant, Gilbert Rist, Adràs November, Claude Auroi, Gilbert Blardone, Ronald Bugge, Florian Meier, Jacques Grinevald, Crise et chuchotements: interrogations sur la pertinence ďun concept dominant. In: Tiers-Monde, tome 27, n°105, 1986. p. 227
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