استكشف المجموعة الواسعة من العناوين المتاحة.

Collections of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures originally published by Archie Comics.

Summary The effects of the present biodiversity crisis have been largely focused on the loss of species. However, a missed component of biodiversity loss that often accompanies or even precedes species disappearance is the extinction of ecological interactions. Here, we propose a novel model that (i) relates the diversity of both species and interactions along a gradient of environmental deterioration and (ii) explores how the rate of loss of ecological functions, and consequently of ecosystem services, can be accelerated or restrained depending on how the rate of species loss covaries with the rate of interactions loss. We find that the loss of species and interactions are decoupled, such that ecological interactions are often lost at a higher rate. This implies that the loss of ecological interactions may occur well before species disappearance, affecting species functionality and ecosystems services at a faster rate than species extinctions. We provide a number of empirical case studies illustrating these points. Our approach emphasizes the importance of focusing on species interactions as the major biodiversity component from which the ‘health’ of ecosystems depends. Lay Summary

The field of health and medical sciences has witnessed a surge of published research exploring the applications of ChatGPT. However, there remains a dearth of knowledge regarding its specific potential and limitations within the domain of nutrition. Given the increasing prevalence of nutrition-related diseases, there is a critical need to prioritize the promotion of a comprehensive understanding of nutrition. This paper examines the potential utility of ChatGPT as a tool for improving nutrition knowledge. Specifically, it scrutinizes its characteristics in relation to personalized meal planning, dietary advice and guidance, food intake tracking, educational materials, and other commonly found features in nutrition applications. Additionally, it explores the potential of ChatGPT to support each stage of the Nutrition Care Process. Addressing the prevailing question of whether ChatGPT can replace healthcare professionals, this paper elucidates its substantial limitations within the context of nutrition practice and education. These limitations encompass factors such as incorrect responses, coordinated nutrition services, hands-on demonstration, physical examination, verbal and non-verbal cues, emotional and psychological aspects, real-time monitoring and feedback, wearable device integration, and ethical and privacy concerns have been highlighted. In summary, ChatGPT holds promise as a valuable tool for enhancing nutrition knowledge, but further research and development are needed to optimize its capabilities in this domain.

Emerging evidence suggests that epigenetic regulation is dependent on metabolic state, and implicates specific metabolic factors in neural functions that drive behaviour 1 . In neurons, acetylation of histones relies on the metabolite acetyl-CoA, which is produced from acetate by chromatin-bound acetyl-CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2) 2 . Notably, the breakdown of alcohol in the liver leads to a rapid increase in levels of blood acetate 3 , and alcohol is therefore a major source of acetate in the body. Histone acetylation in neurons may thus be under the influence of acetate that is derived from alcohol 4 , with potential effects on alcohol-induced gene expression in the brain, and on behaviour 5 . Here, using in vivo stable-isotope labelling in mice, we show that the metabolism of alcohol contributes to rapid acetylation of histones in the brain, and that this occurs in part through the direct deposition of acetyl groups that are derived from alcohol onto histones in an ACSS2-dependent manner. A similar direct deposition was observed when mice were injected with heavy-labelled acetate in vivo. In a pregnant mouse, exposure to labelled alcohol resulted in the incorporation of labelled acetyl groups into gestating fetal brains. In isolated primary hippocampal neurons ex vivo, extracellular acetate induced transcriptional programs related to learning and memory, which were sensitive to ACSS2 inhibition. We show that alcohol-related associative learning requires ACSS2 in vivo. These findings suggest that there is a direct link between alcohol metabolism and gene regulation, through the ACSS2-dependent acetylation of histones in the brain. Acetate that is produced from the breakdown of alcohol contributes to histone acetylation in the brain, indicating that there is a direct link between alcohol metabolism and gene expression.

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered vast governmental lockdowns. The impact of these lockdowns on mental health is inadequately understood. On the one hand such drastic changes in daily routines could be detrimental to mental health. On the other hand, it might not be experienced negatively, especially because the entire population was affected. The aim of this study was to determine mental health outcomes during pandemic induced lockdowns and to examine known predictors of mental health outcomes. We therefore surveyed n = 9,565 people from 78 countries and 18 languages. Outcomes assessed were stress, depression, affect, and wellbeing. Predictors included country, sociodemographic factors, lockdown characteristics, social factors, and psychological factors. Results indicated that on average about 10% of the sample was languishing from low levels of mental health and about 50% had only moderate mental health. Importantly, three consistent predictors of mental health emerged: social support, education level, and psychologically flexible (vs. rigid) responding. Poorer outcomes were most strongly predicted by a worsening of finances and not having access to basic supplies. These results suggest that on whole, respondents were moderately mentally healthy at the time of a population-wide lockdown. The highest level of mental health difficulties were found in approximately 10% of the population. Findings suggest that public health initiatives should target people without social support and those whose finances worsen as a result of the lockdown. Interventions that promote psychological flexibility may mitigate the impact of the pandemic.

Aim: The 'centre-periphery hypothesis' (CPH) predicts that species performance (genetics, physiology, morphology, demography) will decline gradually from the centre towards the periphery of the geographic range. This hypothesis has been subjected to continuous debate since the 1980s, essentially because empirical studies have shown contrasting patterns. Moreover, it has been proposed that species performance might not be higher at the geographic range centre but rather at the environmental optimum or at sites presenting greater environmental stability in time. In this paper we re-evaluate the CPH by disentangling the effects of geographic, climatic and historical centrality/marginality on the demography of three widely distributed plant species and the genetic diversity of one of them. Location: Europe and North America. Methods: Based on a species distribution modelling approach, we test whether demographic parameters (vital rates, stochastic population growth rates, density) of three plant species of contrasting life-forms, and the genetic diversity of one of them, are higher at their geographic range centres, climatic optima or projected glacial refugia. Results: While geographic, climatic and historical centre-periphery gradients are often not concordant, overall, none of them explain well the distribution of species demographic performance, whereas genetic diversity responds positively only to a historical centrality, related to post-glacial range dynamics. Main conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first assessment of the response of species performance to three centrality gradients, considering all the components of different species life cycles and genetic diversity information across continental distributions. Our results are inconsistent with the idea that geographically, climatically or historically marginal populations generally perform worse than central ones. We particularly emphasize the importance of adopting an interdisciplinary approach in order to understand the relative effects of contemporary versus historical and geographic versus ecological factors on the distribution of species performance.

Evolution drives, and is driven by, demography. A genotype moulds its phenotype’s age patterns of mortality and fertility in an environment; these two patterns in turn determine the genotype’s fitness in that environment. Hence, to understand the evolution of ageing, age patterns of mortality and reproduction need to be compared for species across the tree of life. However, few studies have done so and only for a limited range of taxa. Here we contrast standardized patterns over age for 11 mammals, 12 other vertebrates, 10 invertebrates, 12 vascular plants and a green alga. Although it has been predicted that evolution should inevitably lead to increasing mortality and declining fertility with age after maturity, there is great variation among these species, including increasing, constant, decreasing, humped and bowed trajectories for both long- and short-lived species. This diversity challenges theoreticians to develop broader perspectives on the evolution of ageing and empiricists to study the demography of more species. Examination of demographic age trajectories for species from a wide range of taxonomic groups shows that these species have very diverse life-history patterns; mortality and reproduction vary greatly with age for both long- and short-lived species, and the relationships between ageing, mortality and reproduction are clearly complex. Multiple approaches to growing old It is usually assumed that ageing is accompanied by decreasing reproductive potential and increasing mortality. But such assumptions might be parochial, as Owen Jones et al . show in this wide-ranging survey of life-history patterns in a variety of animals and plants. It turns out that mortality and fertility rates vary enormously with age, in short- and long-lived species alike. No single pattern fits all. The relationships between ageing, mortality and reproduction are clearly complex, and more work is required to achieve a more general understanding. Theoreticians need to develop models that can more adequately capture the diversity of ageing, and experiments could usefully be carried out on a more diverse set of species.

RNA splicing is a key mechanism linking genetic variation with psychiatric disorders. Splicing profiles are particularly diverse in brain and difficult to accurately identify and quantify. We developed a new approach to address this challenge, combining long-range PCR and nanopore sequencing with a novel bioinformatics pipeline. We identify the full-length coding transcripts of CACNA1C in human brain. CACNA1C is a psychiatric risk gene that encodes the voltage-gated calcium channel CaV1.2. We show that CACNA1C’s transcript profile is substantially more complex than appreciated, identifying 38 novel exons and 241 novel transcripts. Importantly, many of the novel variants are abundant, and predicted to encode channels with altered function. The splicing profile varies between brain regions, especially in cerebellum. We demonstrate that human transcript diversity (and thereby protein isoform diversity) remains under-characterised, and provide a feasible and cost-effective methodology to address this. A detailed understanding of isoform diversity will be essential for the translation of psychiatric genomic findings into pathophysiological insights and novel psychopharmacological targets.

Digital portfolios have become an essential assessment tool in project-based and student-centered learning environments. Unfortunately, students exert minimal effort in creating digital portfolios because they find the writing component unchallenging. This issue is concerning since existing research predominantly focuses on the use of pre-existing platforms for building digital portfolios. With this concern, there is an opportunity to explore more challenging approaches to digital portfolio creation. Consequently, this study employs a project-based learning (PBL) approach within a website design and development course, where 176 undergraduate students completed weekly coding tasks culminating in a self-coded digital portfolio. Using a one-group posttest-only research design, data were collected through a structured questionnaire that included demographic items and validated scales measuring learning effectiveness and ownership of learning. The survey was administered electronically after students submitted their digital portfolio projects. The results reveal that device ownership shows only weak associations with students’ perceptions, while internet connectivity and self-reported academic performance demonstrate stronger relationships with engagement and ownership of learning. Additionally, prior experience with digital portfolios positively influences students’ engagement, motivation, and ownership of learning. Implications of these findings are discussed for supporting the integration of digital portfolios into technical disciplines. Overall, this study contributes to the literature on PBL methodology, expands our understanding of digital portfolio integration, and underscores the significance of student-centered pedagogies.

The protein kinase R (PKR, also called EIF2AK2) is an interferon-inducible double-stranded RNA protein kinase with multiple effects on cells that plays an active part in the cellular response to numerous types of stress. PKR has been extensively studied and documented for its relevance as an antiviral agent and a cell growth regulator. Recently, the role of PKR related to metabolism, inflammatory processes, cancer and neurodegenerative diseases has gained interest. In this review, we summarise and discuss the involvement of PKR in several cancer signalling pathways and the dual role that this kinase plays in cancer disease. We emphasise the importance of PKR as a molecular target for both conventional chemotherapeutics and emerging treatments based on novel drugs, and its potential as a biomarker and therapeutic target for several pathologies. Finally, we discuss the impact that the recent knowledge regarding PKR involvement in metabolism has in our understanding of the complex processes of cancer and metabolism pathologies, highlighting the translational research establishing the clinical and therapeutic potential of this pleiotropic kinase.