Explore the vast range of titles available.

Early life experiences have long-lasting effects on behaviour and physiology, influencing development of adaptive natural behaviours. Enriching farmed environments encourages expression of natural behaviours in captive fish, promoting positive animal welfare, important for conducting valid and reproducible research and informing better management practices. Using juvenile Atlantic Salmon ( Salmo salar ), we tested whether provision of environmental enrichment in early life improves welfare. Welfare indicators were measured comparing enriched to non-enriched tanks. Morphological (fin damage and body condition), physiological (plasma cortisol) and behavioural traits (activity, group cohesion, and neophobia) were recorded. Molecular expression of brain mRNA transcripts related to stress response, neuroplasticity and serotonergic system was analysed. Environmental enrichment did not affect morphological welfare indicators, activity, or cortisol. Enriched fish were more cohesive than non-enriched fish, less neophobic, with higher serotonergic turnover, suggesting enrichment mitigates against stress, promoting positive emotional states. Genes related to neuronal development and activity ( bdnf and ndf1 ), cellular stress ( hsp90 and hsp70 ), and serotonin synthesis (tph2 ) increased in enriched fish following stress, enhancing cognitive function. Our findings suggest early life environmental enrichment is advantageous for positive animal welfare by improving emotional states in captive environments, ensuring animals are free of negative experiences and able to access positive ones.

Structural analysis is utilised to evaluate the behaviour of structures under applied loads to ensure their safety and stability. It is crucial in designing, assessing, and retrofitting buildings and structures. With the growing adoption of Building Information Modelling (BIM) in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry, using BIM for conducting structural analysis enables professionals from different disciplines to collaborate efficiently throughout a building’s lifecycle. When no BIM is available from a structure, scan-to-BIM can be employed to produce a BIM from point clouds generated through laser scanning or photogrammetry approaches. An essential step in scan-to-BIM is requirement analysis which optimizes scan-to-BIM by identifying essential data and avoiding the inclusion of unnecessary information. This study conducts a comprehensive requirement analysis, identifying five essential structural elements namely, columns, primary beams, secondary beams, floor systems, and shear walls that must be included in a Structural Analysis Ready BIM (SARBIM) for Reinforced Concrete (RC) structures. Additionally, three critical information categories - Material Mechanical Properties (MMP), Reinforcement Content (RCo), and Cross-Section Information (CSI) - are outlined as key information for these elements. Furthermore, this study presents essential modelling considerations to enhance the accuracy and reliability of SARBIM models. By refining BIM models for structural analysis, this research contributes to the advancement of SARBIM in the field.

Environmental enrichment (EE) offers a non-invasive strategy to enhance fish welfare, yet its immunological benefits in fish remain incompletely explored and rarely applied in aquaculture practice. This study assessed whether EE exposure alone can modulate immune responses in rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss ). EE was implemented as simple physical structures added to otherwise barren tanks, either as horizontally placed gravel substrate (H) simulating a riverbed or vertically suspended rubber cords (V) simulating plant like structures. Tanks without enrichment served as barren controls (C). In experiment 1 (Exp1), trout reared with H, or V enrichment were compared to C for behavioural, neuroendocrine, and immune parameters. The H setup increased social interactions and showed signs of inflammatory activation in the head kidney leukocyte (HKL) functional assays. The V setup led to reduced monocyte counts and slightly higher spontaneous respiratory burst activity (SRBA), although the latter was not statistically significant ( p  > 0.05). In the subsequent experiment using a 2 × 2 factorial design combining enrichment and high (× 2) stocking density (Exp2), trout in the V setup maintained significantly higher immune activity (evident through elevated SRBA, cellular peroxidase content in the HKL, and serum lysozyme activity) under × 2 stocking density conditions ( p  < 0.05). In both experiments, the coefficient of variation (CV) for serum cortisol was higher in the V setup, including at × 2 stocking density, but not significantly different from the C setup ( p  > 0.05). Behavioural modulation was indirectly evidenced by a negative correlation between cortisol levels and body size, suggesting hierarchy formation. Overall, EE influenced neuroendocrine, behavioural, and immune parameters in trout, with V emerging as a practical immunostimulatory measure suitable for juveniles (< 1 year; 5–50 g).

The northeastern Sichuan Basin hosts deep brines with unusually high concentrations of potassium (K) and lithium (Li). This study examines deep brines abundant in K and Li in northeastern Sichuan Basin. Brine samples from Well ZK601 underwent comprehensive analysis for major elements, trace elements, and Sr isotopes. Lithium content in core samples correlated with regional brine reservoir features. Brine samples showed a salinity range of 354.6–363 g/L, with varying contents of Na+ (101–106 g/L), K+ (28.92–34.84 g/L), Cl− (202.1–206 g/L), Br− (2110–2980 mg/L), and Li+ (169.5–204.5 mg/L). The 87Sr/86Sr ratio in brine was 0.708324. Li notably increased post-green bean rock deposition in 71 core samples. The ratios are as follows: Br × 103/Cl is 10.24, K × 103/Cl is 169.13, nNa/nCl is 0.74, and SO4 × 103/Cl is 0.49. These brines likely originated from ancient seawater, evolving via rock interactions during burial, notably enriching K and Li through gypsum dehydration. Geochemical traits and Sr isotopes affirm ancient seawater origin, stressing continual water–rock interactions. The volcanic activity contributed significantly to lithium enrichment, consolidated during later burial stages. Brine reservoirs, mostly in formations like dolomite within the Jialingjiang Formation, associate closely with fractured zones. Structural traps define distribution, while fault systems govern enrichment. Accumulation mainly occurs in fractured zones, reflecting a mineralization model of seawater origins, metamorphism, filtration, and structural enrichment. In summary, our model outlines a transformation from seawater origins to structural controls enriching K and Li in deep brines in northeastern Sichuan Basin.

Nowadays, lower post-release survivorship of hatchery-reared fish in natural aquatic bodies has attained great attention and research is in progress to determine the reasons for their higher mortality. It is assumed that hatchery rearing environments negatively affect the physiological stress response of the fish. Thus, understanding how rearing environments modulate this is important for the well-being of fish. Here, an attempt has been made to assess the influence of two early rearing environments, i.e., barren (BR), mimic the conventional hatchery rearing environment; without any substrate and enrichment items and structurally enriched (ER), containing multi-colored gravel substrate, cobbles and plants, on the stress regulators i.e., HPI-axis and brain monoaminergic system of fish. Three-day old grass carp ( Ctenopharyngodon idella ) postlarvae were reared up to the fingerling stage in the aforementioned environments. For the stress assay, fish were subjected to net capture followed by 30 min confinement in a small container at a lower water level. The pre- and post-stress responses were compared by evaluating their water-borne cortisol and the mRNA level of corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH), dopamine D1A receptor (DRD1A) and hydroxytryptamine receptor 2B (HTR2B) in the whole brain through qPCR analysis. Results of two-way ANOVA revealed significantly low (p < .001) post-stress concentration and release rate of water-borne cortisol and pre- and post-stress expression of CRH, DRD1A and HTR2B genes in the ER than BR fish. It is concluded that a structurally complex early rearing environment reduces the stress level in fish.

Aim Increased atmospheric nitrogen deposition may have profound effects on tree carbon allocation dynamics. However, a comprehensive understanding of how nitrogen (N) enrichment influences carbon (C) allocation across plant functional processes and tree organs in individual trees remains elusive. Location Global forest ecosystems. Time period 1990–2018. Major taxa studied Trees. Methods We compiled data from 75 N addition experiments and conducted a meta‐analysis to evaluate the responses of C source (photosynthesis), sinks (growth and respiration) and storage (non‐structural carbohydrate concentrations) in different tree organs (foliage, above‐ground wood and roots) to N enrichment. Results N enrichment significantly enhanced C supply via photosynthesis (+39.6%, n = 128). C allocation to growth (biomass increment/production) significantly increased in foliage (+15.9%, n = 68) and above‐ground wood (+31.8%, n = 64; bole, branch, stem and/or twig) with increasing N availability, but not in roots, whereas allocation increased in roots via increasing fine root turnover rate (+22.6%, n = 11). N fertilization significantly increased C allocation to respiration in above‐ground wood (+46.6%, n = 12) and roots (+5.5%, n = 57), but not in foliage. N addition decreased non‐structural carbohydrate (NSC) concentrations in foliage (−5.4%, n = 16) and roots (−5.0%, n = 21), but increased NSC in above‐ground wood (+6.1%, n = 22). In addition, N enrichment effects were strongly affected by moderator variables. Main conclusions Our results demonstrate that N addition increased C allocation to growth and respiration more strongly than C allocation to NSC storage, and increased C allocation to above‐ground parts more strongly than to below‐ground parts. Our results are useful for better understanding the response of tree functional processes at organ level to N enrichment. The existing data also reveal that more long‐term experimental studies on mature trees in tropical and boreal forests are urgently needed to provide a basis for forecasting tree responses to N enrichment at the global scale.

When the DNA bases cytosine and guanine are next to each other, a methyl group is generally added to the pyrimidine, generating a mCpG dinucleotide. This modification alters DNA structure but can also affect function by inhibiting transcription factor (TF) binding. Yin et al. systematically analyzed the effect of CpG methylation on the binding of 542 human TFs (see the Perspective by Hughes and Lambert). In addition to inhibiting binding of some TFs, they found that mCpGs can promote binding of others, particularly TFs involved in development, such as homeodomain proteins. Science , this issue p. eaaj2239 ; see also p. 489 Genome-scale analysis reveals positive and negative binding of transcription factors to methylated CpG dinucleotides. The majority of CpG dinucleotides in the human genome are methylated at cytosine bases. However, active gene regulatory elements are generally hypomethylated relative to their flanking regions, and the binding of some transcription factors (TFs) is diminished by methylation of their target sequences. By analysis of 542 human TFs with methylation-sensitive SELEX (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment), we found that there are also many TFs that prefer CpG-methylated sequences. Most of these are in the extended homeodomain family. Structural analysis showed that homeodomain specificity for methylcytosine depends on direct hydrophobic interactions with the methylcytosine 5-methyl group. This study provides a systematic examination of the effect of an epigenetic DNA modification on human TF binding specificity and reveals that many developmentally important proteins display preference for mCpG-containing sequences.

We tested the prediction that the abundance and diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are influenced by resource availability and plant community composition by examining the joint effects of carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) enrichment, nitrogen (N) fertilization and plant diversity on AM fungi. We quantified AM fungal spores and extramatrical hyphae in 176 plots after 7 yr of treatment with all combinations of ambient or elevated CO ₂ (368 or 560 ppm), with or without N fertilization (0 or 4 g N mˉ² ), and one (monoculture) or 16 host plant species (polyculture) in the BioCON field experiment at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, Minnesota, USA. Extramatrical hyphal lengths were increased by CO ₂ enrichment, whereas AM spore abundance decreased with N fertilization. Spore abundance, morphotype richness and extramatrical hyphal lengths were all greater in monoculture plots. A structural equation model showed AM fungal biovolume was most influenced by CO ₂ enrichment, plant community composition and plant richness, whereas spore richness was most influenced by fungal biovolume, plant community composition and plant richness. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi responded to differences in host community and resource availability, suggesting that mycorrhizal functions, such as carbon sequestration and soil stability, will be affected by global change.

Artificial photosynthesis is a promising strategy for efficient hydrogen peroxide production, but the poor directional charge transfer from bulk to active sites restricts the overall photocatalytic efficiency. To address this, a new process of dipole field-driven spontaneous polarization in nitrogen-rich triazole-based carbon nitride (C 3 N 5 ) to harness photogenerated charge kinetics for hydrogen peroxide production is constructed. Here, C 3 N 5 achieves a hydrogen peroxide photosynthesis rate of 3809.5 µmol g −1 h −1 and a 2e − transfer selectivity of 92% under simulated sunlight and ultrasonic forces. This high performance is attributed to the introduction of rich nitrogen active sites of the triazole ring in C 3 N 5 , which brings a dipole field. This dipole field induces a spontaneous polarization field to accelerate a rapid directional electron transfer process to nitrogen active sites and therefore induces Pauling-type adsorption of oxygen through an indirect 2e − transfer pathway to form hydrogen peroxide. This innovative concept using a dipole field to harness the migration and transport of photogenerated carriers provides a new route to improve photosynthesis efficiency via structural engineering. The poor directional charge transfer from bulk to active sites restricts the overall photocatalytic efficiency. Here, the authors report a new process of dipole field-driven spontaneous polarization in nitrogen-rich triazole-based carbon nitride to harness photogenerated charge kinetics for hydrogen peroxide production.