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Spain is among the five countries in the world with the highest levels of social acceptance of LGBTIQ+ people and rights, and was the third country in the world to legalize same-sex marriages, in 2005. In 2019, 3.1% of marriages were between same-sex couples (INE 2020). In this context, it would seem consistent that sexual orientation should not determine wage inequalities. But is this really so? What is the relationship between sexual orientation and wages?

The study, recently published in Journal of Family Issues, found a significant correlation between sexual orientation -measured on the basis of type of partner- and wages.

A study led by María José González, a professor at the UPF Department of Political and Social Sciences and a researcher with the Sociodemography Research Group (DemoSoc), together with ?brahim Sönmez, a predoctoral researcher and member of the same group, has analysed for the first time in Spain whether sexual orientation leads to salary differences between men and women who live with a partner.

The study, recently published in Journal of Family Issues, finds a significant correlation between sexual orientation -measured on the basis of type of partner- and wages, despite the degree of tolerance of LGBTIQ+ rights.

The labour market discriminates against partnered homosexual men

M. José González asserts that "our results show that partnered gay men suffer a wage disadvantage compared to partnered heterosexuals under this model. And this disadvantage remains present even after taking sociodemographic differences into account such as the presence of children, educational attainment, occupational level, work experience or sector of employment (public and private)".

According to the authors, statistical analyses indicate that the wage gap due to men's sexual orientation can largely be attributed to unobservable variables, which would indicate the presence of discrimination against homosexuals in the labour market.

Partnered lesbians earn more money, due to their socio-occupational profile

Moreover, with regard to partnered women, the research finds that lesbians have a wage advantage compared to heterosexual women. However, this advantage disappears after controlling for differences in labour trends of women according to sexual orientation.

"Lesbians are less likely to undertake the bulk of household tasks and home care and, therefore, are also less susceptible to inactivity and part-time work than heterosexual women", M. José González explains. And she adds: "If, however, we take working hours into account, both lesbians and heterosexuals receive wages according to their training and work experience, regardless of their sexual orientation".

Analysis of data between 2006 and 2018 from the EPA labour force survey, the social security and tax agencies

The work is the first in its field in Spain, as for the first time a database is available that combines individual income and household make-up (EPA labour force survey with a sample of nearly 190,000 people) with wage data records from the social security and tax agencies. These data allow analysing the association between wages and type of partner (homosexual or heterosexual) for men and women in Spain between 2006 and 2018.

The authors identify people living with a same-sex partner (homosexual) and opposite sex partners (heterosexual).

The authors identify people living with a same-sex partner (homosexual) and opposite sex partners (heterosexual). In fact, they do not have a perfect indicator of sexual orientation of the population (these data are not usually available in official surveys) but an approximate or indirect variable obtained from the make-up by sex of couples (from questions such as whether they live with a partner and the sex of the partner).

Legislation must eliminate stereotypes and discrimination, which still exist

The work, which highlights the need to implement policies that work to eliminate stereotypes and prejudices towards different sexual orientations, stresses that in a seemingly open, tolerant society as is Spain, sexual orientation is still important. "Our study has shown that the transgression of the mandate of heteronormativity has consequences in the labour market for men, but not for women", M. José González asserts.

"Our study has shown that the transgression of the mandate of heteronormativity has consequences for the labour market for men, but not for women".

Moreover, the authors warn of "statistical discrimination", which mostly affects heterosexual women (and not so much lesbians, with higher wages): they are offered lower wages in the labour market not due to their personal characteristics, but due to the widespread perception that they are less productive due to the specialization of gender roles and the corresponding overload of housework and care.

Finally, there are some "unobserved characteristics", such as value or expectations, which may affect wage inequality between men and women in same-sex couples and couples of the opposite sex. "If a gay man expects to be discriminated against, his labour market expectations may be reduced. In this case, it is not sexual orientation that is responsible for wage inequality, but differences in ambition and expectations", M. José González concludes.

Scientists at UCL have used artificial intelligence (AI) to identify three new multiple sclerosis (MS) subtypes. Researchers say the groundbreaking findings will help identify those people more likely to have disease progression and help target treatments more effectively.

MS affects over 2.8 million people globally and 130,000 in the UK, and is classified into four* 'courses' (groups), which are defined as either relapsing or progressive. Patients are categorised by a mixture of clinical observations, assisted by MRI brain images, and patients' symptoms. These observations guide the timing and choice of treatment.

For this study, published in Nature Communications, researchers wanted to find out if there were any - as yet unidentified - patterns in brain images, which would better guide treatment choice and identify patients who would best respond to a particular therapy.

Explaining the research, lead author Dr Arman Eshaghi (UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology) said: "Currently MS is classified broadly into progressive and relapsing groups, which are based on patient symptoms; it does not directly rely on the underlying biology of the disease, and therefore cannot assist doctors in choosing the right treatment for the right patients.

"Here, we used artificial intelligence and asked the question: can AI find MS subtypes that follow a certain pattern on brain images? Our AI has uncovered three data-driven MS subtypes that are defined by pathological abnormalities seen on brain images."

In this study, researchers applied the UCL-developed AI tool, SuStaIn (Subtype and Stage Inference), to the MRI brain scans of 6,322 MS patients. The unsupervised SuStaIn trained itself and identified three (previously unknown) patterns.

The new MS subtypes were defined as 'cortex-led', 'normal-appearing white matter-led', and 'lesion-led.' These definitions relate to the earliest abnormalities seen on the MRI scans within each pattern.

Once SuStaIn had completed its analysis on the training MRI dataset, it was 'locked' and then used to identify the three subtypes in a separate independent cohort of 3,068 patients thereby validating its ability to detect the new MS subtypes.

Dr Eshaghi added: "We did a further retrospective analysis of patient records to see how people with the newly identified MS subtypes responded to various treatments.

While further clinical studies are needed, there was a clear difference, by subtype, in patients' response to different treatments and in accumulation of disability over time. This is an important step towards predicting individual responses to therapies."

NIHR Research Professor Olga Ciccarelli (UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology), the senior author of the study, said: "The method used to classify MS is currently focused on imaging changes only; we are extending the approach to including other clinical information.

"This exciting field of research will lead to an individual definition of MS course and individual prediction of treatment response in MS using AI, which will be used to select the right treatment for the right patient at the right time."

One of the senior authors, Professor Alan Thompson, Dean of the UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences, said: "We are aware of the limitations of the current descriptors of MS which can be less than clear when applied to prescribing treatment. Now with the help of AI and large datasets, we have made the first step towards a better understanding of the underlying disease mechanisms which may inform our current clinical classification. This is a fantastic achievement and has the potential to be a real game-changer, informing both disease evolution and selection of patients for clinical trials."

Researchers say the findings suggest that MRI-based subtypes predict MS disability progression and response to treatment and can now be used to define groups of patients in interventional trials. Prospective research with clinical trials is required as the next step to confirm these findings.

Dr Clare Walton, Head of Research at the MS Society, said: "We're delighted to have helped fund this study through our work with the International Progressive MS Alliance. MS is unpredictable and different for everyone, and we know one of our community's main concerns is how their condition might develop. Having an MRI-based model to help predict future progression and tailor your treatment plan accordingly could be hugely reassuring to those affected. These findings also provide valuable insight into what drives progression in MS, which is crucial to finding new treatments for everyone. We're excited to see what comes next."

MS is a neurological (nerve) condition and is one of the most common causes of disability in young people. It arises when the immune system mistakenly attacks the coating (myelin sheaths) that wrap around nerves in the brain and spinal cord. This results in the electrical signals, which pass messages along the nerves, to be disrupted, travel more slowly, or fail to get through at all.

Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, however the first signs of MS often start years earlier. Common early signs include tingling, numbness, a loss of balance and problems with vision, but because other conditions cause the same symptoms, it can take time to reach a definitive diagnosis.

Many patients have relapsing MS at first, a form of the disease where symptoms come and go as nerves are damaged, repaired and damaged again. But about half have a progressive form of the condition in which nerve damage steadily accumulates and causes ever worsening disability. Patients may experience tremors, speech problems and muscle stiffness or spasms, and may need walking aids or a wheelchair.

Mitochondria, known as the powerhouses within human cells, generate the energy needed for cell survival. However, as a byproduct of this process, mitochondria also produce reactive oxygen species (ROS). At high enough concentrations, ROS cause oxidative damage and can even kill cells. An overabundance of ROS has been connected to various health issues, including cancers, neurological disorders, and heart disease.

An enzyme called manganese superoxide dismutase, or MnSOD, uses a mechanism involving electron and proton transfers to lower ROS levels in mitochondria, thus preventing oxidative damage and maintaining cell health. More than a quarter of known enzymes also rely on electron and proton transfers to facilitate cellular activities that are essential for human health. However, most of their mechanisms are unclear because of the difficulties in observing how protons move.

Researchers from the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) and the Department of Energy's (DOE's) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have now observed the complete atomic structure of MnSOD, including its proton arrangements, with neutron scattering. The findings, published in Nature Communications, reveal how protons are used as tools to help MnSOD transfer electrons for reducing ROS levels. The work could help experts develop MnSOD-based treatments and design therapeutic drugs that mimic its antioxidant behavior. The neutron study also opens an avenue for studying other enzymes that utilize electron and proton transfers.

"Using neutrons, we were able to see MnSOD features that were completely unexpected, and we believe this will revolutionize how people think this enzyme and other enzymes like it operate," said Gloria Borgstahl, a UNMC professor and corresponding author of the new study.

MnSOD works by targeting superoxide, a reactive molecule that leaks from the mitochondrial energy production process and is the chemical precursor for other harmful ROS. The enzyme's active site turns superoxide into less toxic products by using its manganese ion to move electrons to and from the reactive molecule. The manganese ion is capable of stealing an electron from a superoxide molecule, converting it to oxygen. This stolen electron can then be given to another superoxide to make hydrogen peroxide.

For this biochemical reaction to work, a series of proton movements need to take place between the enzyme's amino acids and other molecules at its active site. The protons act as instruments that enable the electrons to move. Until now, the enzyme's sequence of electron and proton transfers, also known as its catalytic mechanism, had not been defined at the atomic level because of challenges in tracking how protons are shuttled between molecules. A fundamental understanding of this catalytic process could inform therapeutic approaches that harness this enzyme's antioxidant abilities.

Proton transfers are not easily seen because they occur in the form of atomic hydrogen, which x-rays and other techniques for observing atoms have difficulty detecting. Neutrons, on the other hand, are sensitive to lighter elements like hydrogen and thus can pinpoint proton movements. Neutrons are also well suited for this research because they do not interact with electrons, unlike other atom-visualizing techniques. Thus, they can be used to study the inner workings of electron-transfer enzymes without disturbing their electronic state.

"Because neutrons are particles that do not interact with charge, they don't interfere with the electronic properties of metals, which makes them an ideal probe for analyzing metal-containing enzymes, like MnSOD," said Leighton Coates, an ORNL neutron scattering scientist involved with this study. "Additionally, neutrons don't cause radiation damage to materials, allowing us to collect multiple snapshots of the same sample as it shifts between electronic states."

Using MaNDi, the macromolecular neutron diffractometer at ORNL's Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), the research team was able to map out the entire atomic structure of MnSOD and track how the enzyme's protons change when it gains or loses an electron. By analyzing the neutron data, the scientists traced the pathways of protons as they moved around the active site. Using this information, the team built a model of a proposed catalytic mechanism, detailing how electron and proton transfers enable MnSOD to regulate superoxide levels.

Their analysis suggests that catalysis involves two internal proton transfers between the enzyme's amino acids and two external proton transfers that originate from solvent molecules. While the results of this study confirm some past predictions of the enzyme's biochemical nature, several aspects were unexpected and challenge previously held beliefs.

For example, the team uncovered cyclic proton transfers occurring between a glutamine amino acid and a manganese-bound solvent molecule. This interaction is a central part of the catalytic process, as it allows the enzyme to cycle between its two electronic states. The researchers also found the proton movements within the active site to be unusual, as several amino acids did not have a proton where they normally would. The study demonstrates the dramatic effects a metal has on the chemistry of the active site that is usually not accounted for.

"Our results suggest that this mechanism is more complex and atypical than what past studies had theorized," said Jahaun Azadmanesh, a researcher at UNMC and study co-author.

As a next step in the project, the researchers are now planning to examine the enzyme's structure when it is bound to a superoxide substrate. They also aim to study mutated components of MnSOD to gain more details regarding how each amino acid influences catalysis. Another research goal is to expand their neutron analysis to other enzymes that rely on electron and proton transfers to carry out cellular tasks.

"Over a fourth of all known enzyme activities involve electron and proton transfers," said Azadmanesh. "MnSOD is just one enzyme in a sea of many others, and with neutrons, we can study their catalytic mechanisms to a level of detail that hasn't been possible before."

Researchers from Columbia University and Georgetown University published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that examines how consumers can adopt a sustainable consumption lifestyle by purchasing durable high-end and luxury products.

The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled "Buy Less, Buy Luxury: Understanding and Overcoming Product Durability Neglect for Sustainable Consumption" and is authored by Jennifer Sun, Silvia Bellezza, and Neeru Paharia.

What do luxury products and sustainable goods have in common? Luxury goods possess a unique, sustainable trait that gives them a longer lifespan than lower-end products.

Sustainable consumption is on the rise with all consumers. However, younger millennial and Gen Z consumers have been more vocal about their desire to embrace sustainability. Several trends have emerged that signal such an inclination, such as "buy less, buy better" and "slow-fashion," as witnessed by the trend of celebrities wearing identical outfits at multiple award ceremonies. Consumers advocating such lifestyles strive to purchase fewer, higher-end products that will last longer rather than many inexpensive products that will be quickly thrown away. However, these trends and movements still represent niche segments because products with expensive price tags do not fit the stereotype of sustainable consumption generally associated with restraint and moderation.

Fast-fashion retailers such as H&M and Zara have enabled consumers to buy disposable clothing and accessories, contributing to a 36% decrease in the average number of times an item is worn compared with 15 years ago. While fast fashion offers consumers access to trendy, albeit short-lived, attire at affordable prices, it also exacts high environmental costs. Indeed, the fashion industry has become one of the largest polluters, contributing 10% of global carbon emissions as well as 20% of global wastewater.

Sun says that "We propose that luxury goods possess a unique, sustainable trait of being durable, which includes being long-lasting and timeless in style, thereby allowing them to have a longer lifespan than lower-end products. Focusing on the clothing and accessories industries, we find that high-end products can be more sustainable than mass-market products."

Yet, why is it that consumers have such a hard time seeing sustainability and luxury as being compatible? Despite the long-lasting nature of high-end goods, sustainable luxury can be a paradoxical concept for consumers because many of them neglect the durability inherent in luxury products. Typical consumers prefer to buy multiple mass-market products instead of fewer, high-end items. "That is due to product durability neglect, a failure to consider how long products will last, even though durability is an important product attribute that consumers genuinely value," explains Bellezza. How can marketers help consumers focus on durability? The researchers say that when the long-lasting nature of high-end products is emphasized, consumers are more likely to overcome their durability neglect and buy fewer, but better high-end products.

While consumers can actively participate in the sustainability movement by selectively purchasing fewer, durable products that last longer, companies can also benefit from emphasizing product durability, an appealing and timely attribute that directly relates to sustainable luxury. In fact, many high-end entrepreneurial brands, such as Pivotte, Everlane, and Cuyana, as well as more established premium and luxury brands, such as Patagonia and Loro Piana, promote the use of high-quality materials and timeless styles that extend the longevity of their products.

Paharia says that "Focusing on the durability aspect of sustainability can be an effective marketing strategy for high-end brands to promote their products while at the same time helping consumers engage in more sustainable consumption practices. That is, emphasizing product durability may shape consumers' actual purchase behavior while promoting an attribute central to luxury brands." In fact, two notable campaigns that directly speak to these findings include Patagonia's "Buy Less, Demand More" advertisement, which posits that purchasing buying fewer, more durable Patagonia products is good for consumers and the environment, as well as Patek Philippe's iconic "Generations" campaign, which proposes that the brand's watches are so durable and timeless that consumers merely look after them for the next generation. Marketers and brand managers of high-end products can emphasize the durability of their products to help consumers overcome product durability neglect and nudge them towards buying fewer, better goods for a more sustainable future.

Full article and author contact information available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022242921993172

BOSTON - A gene called KRAS is one of the most commonly mutated genes in all human cancers, and targeted drugs that inhibit the protein expressed by mutated KRAS have shown promising results in clinical trials, with potential approvals by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration anticipated later this year. Unfortunately, cancer cells often develop additional mutations that make them resistant to such targeted drugs, resulting in disease relapse. Now researchers led by a team at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have identified the first resistance mechanisms that may occur to these drugs and identified strategies to overcome them. The findings are published in Cancer Discovery.

One mutated version of KRAS that commonly arises in cancer cells is called KRAS(G12C), and it produces a mutated KRAS protein that allows the cells to grow and spread in the body. "Now, with the development of KRAS(G12C) inhibitors, the treatment landscape for KRAS-mutant cancers is rapidly evolving," says co-lead author Jessica J. Lin, MD, an attending physician in the Center for Thoracic Cancers and the Termeer Center for Targeted Therapies at MGH. "KRAS(G12C) inhibitors adagrasib and sotorasib have recently demonstrated promising efficacy and safety in advanced KRAS(G12C)-mutant cancers."

Although these may be life-saving therapies for many patients, resistance to the drugs is anticipated. Such was the case for a woman in an early clinical trial of adagrasib for lung cancer. After an initial reduction in tumor size, her tumor started growing again.

Analyses by Lin and her colleagues revealed various new tumor mutations in addition to KRAS(G12C). Interestingly, many of these mutations ultimately reactivated the signaling pathway driven by KRAS in cells (called the RAS-MAPK pathway), which is involved in cell growth and division. In addition, the team found a novel KRAS(Y96D) mutation, which further alters the structure of the KRAS(G12C) protein so that it is no longer effectively blocked by adagrasib, sotorasib or other inhibitors. However, experiments revealed that one KRAS(G12C) inhibitor, which binds in a different way to the active state of KRAS, could still overcome this multi-mutant KRAS protein.

"Our results suggest a role for the rational design of distinct KRAS inhibitors to overcome resistance to KRAS(G12C) inhibitors in patients," says Lin. "Additionally, the convergence of different mutations towards RAS-MAPK reactivation suggests that the greater impact for KRAS(G12C) inhibitors may be in combination with other drugs such as downstream RAS-MAPK pathway inhibitors. These are all areas that need to be further explored."

Lin emphasizes that this study represents only the tip of the iceberg. "We need to extend our findings and better understand the scope of resistance mechanisms that occur in patients treated with KRAS(G12C) inhibitors and other mutant-specific KRAS inhibitors," she says. "Ongoing efforts to comprehensively understand the mechanisms of resistance to mutant-specific KRAS inhibitors will be pivotal in developing novel therapeutic approaches and improving care for patients with KRAS-mutant cancers."

A new U.S. Geological Survey study provides an updated, statewide estimate of high levels of naturally occurring arsenic and uranium in private well water across Connecticut. This research builds on a USGS report published in 2017, with the new study including additional groundwater samples and focusing on previously underrepresented areas.

The research, undertaken in cooperation with the Connecticut Department of Public Health, projects that approximately 3.9% of private wells across Connecticut contain water with arsenic at concentrations higher than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's maximum contaminant level for public drinking-water supplies. This research also projects that 4.7% of private wells in the state have uranium concentrations higher than the EPA's standards.

CT DPH officials urge all private well owners to have their water tested for possible arsenic and uranium.

Arsenic and uranium are naturally occurring metals in bedrock around the world. Sometimes wells drilled into bedrock aquifers can produce water containing arsenic or uranium. Unless wells are tested, there's no way to confirm the presence or absence of these contaminants.

According to the CT DPH, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, EPA and other health experts, there are potential health risks when concentrations of arsenic and uranium in groundwater used for drinking are higher than established human-health standards. Arsenic exposure has been related to increased cancer risk, low birth weight, decreased child intellectual development, immune system suppression and other adverse health outcomes. Ingestion of uranium, such as through drinking water, has been associated with kidney disease.

Data from this study can be used to better estimate the number of people potentially affected by high concentrations of naturally occurring arsenic and uranium in water from private wells.

An estimated 23% of Connecticut residents have private wells for their water supply. During the study, the CT DPH, with help from its state laboratory and local health officials, collected and analyzed water samples from more than 2,000 private wells throughout the state. Where high levels of arsenic or uranium were detected, state and local health officials worked with participating residents to inform and assist them with remedial measures to protect their water supply.

"This report provides essential tools to citizens, health officials, well drillers, government officials and others for better protecting their communities and the environment," said Eliza Gross, USGS physical scientist and lead author of the study. "The previous USGS study published in 2017 identified some areas where there were high contaminant levels, and we now have a more complete statewide assessment."

"Even though we know there are areas across our state that have higher concentrations than others, any private well in Connecticut has the potential to have elevated arsenic or uranium," said Ryan Tetreault, CT DPH Private Well Program supervisor. "Private well owners should have their well water tested at least once for these contaminants."

The CT DPH recommends that if tested well water has arsenic at a level greater than federal and state standards, an alternate source of water should be used or a treatment system should be installed. Also, if uranium in well water is at a concentration greater than the EPA standard of 30 micrograms per liter, the water should be treated to remove the uranium.

To ensure accuracy in the assessment, researchers separated Connecticut into grid cells for what's called a "spatially weighted analysis": a process that ensures areas with clusters of samples aren't overrepresented in a statewide estimate.

The USGS also found that certain bedrock types are more likely than others to yield high concentrations of arsenic and uranium in groundwater.

"While bedrock geology is not always predictive of higher or lower concentrations of arsenic or uranium in groundwater, knowing that certain geologic settings have a high likelihood can help inform decisions, such as drilling new wells, planning for development or deciding whether to conduct additional water-quality testing," said Gross. "This insight on geologic settings can also be applied to research in other states."

The inequality is enormous: Mothers in select African countries are more than 100 times more likely to have had a child die than mothers in high-income countries.

This is what Diego Alburez-Gutierrez (Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) in Rostock, Germany), Emily Smith-Greenaway (Researcher at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles and Guest Researcher at MPIDR), and co-authors found in their recent paper published in BMJ Global Health.

"We offer the first global estimates of the cumulative number of child deaths experienced by mothers between the ages of 20 and 49, in 170 countries," said Smith-Greenaway.

Initially, she and her collaborators did so by drawing from the wealth of publicly available survey data, collected between 2010 and 2018, to calculate the proportion of mothers who have ever lost an offspring in 89 countries.

A new indirect approach to estimate the prevalence of bereaved mothers

"The innovation of our study lies in the fact that we expanded beyond these 89 countries and provided estimates for those lacking recent, nationally representative survey data by leveraging a novel indirect approach that combines formal kinship models and life-table methods," says Alburez-Gutierrez. "That has allowed us to offer a comprehensive look at bereavement worldwide." The estimates generated for these additional 81 countries are interpretable, just as the survey estimates.

International inequalities in mothers' experiences of the death of a child will linger beyond the initial improvement in infant and child mortality conditions, given the varied demographic history of populations. In the seven least affected countries, which includes Japan, Finland, and Spain, fewer than 5 per 1,000 mothers who are between 20 and 44 years old have ever lost an offspring younger than one year old. In Germany, only 6 out of 1,000 mothers have ever lost an infant.

In 34 countries, mostly in Africa, more than 150 per 1,000 mothers have experienced the death of an infant. That means mothers in these countries are more than 30 times as likely to have had a child die than mothers in the seven countries with the lowest numbers. Moreover, in as many as 16 countries--all located in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East--more than 200 per 1,000 mothers have lost an infant.

It is concerning that the very parts of the world where the cumulative burden of child death is heaviest for mothers are also the settings where the least is known about the social, economic, relational, and health implications of child death for mothers. "We hope that this work will emphasize that further efforts to lower child deaths will not only improve the quality and length of life for children across the globe, but will also fundamentally improve the lives of parents," said Smith-Greenaway.

A University of Guam review of published research on the critically endangered Serianthes nelsonii tree has revealed a reason why the population of the trees continues to be endangered despite a long history of funded conservation projects and a national recovery plan implemented 26 years ago. The review article, co-authored by biologists of the Plant Physiology Laboratory of UOG's Western Pacific Tropical Research Center, was published on March 2 in Horticulturae journal (doi:10.3390/horticulturae7030043).

"A main message of our paper is that decision-makers from funding agencies limit conservation success when practitioners with no demonstrable publication history are funded," said co-author Benjamin Deloso. "This is essentially what happened for decades with the Serianthes nelsonii funding."

Lack of appreciable research to inform management decisions

With a global natural population of less than 50 mature trees and an endemic range of only two small tropical islands in the Mariana Islands, the extinction risks for the Serianthes nelsonii are acute.

The article references a national recovery plan for the tree, published in 1994, that explicitly called for research to increase relevant knowledge. Then no publishable research was generated for the first 21 years of the recovery plan's implementation.

"Critically endangered plant species with extremely small populations are among the most difficult species to study," said co-author April Cascasan. "Researchers must rely on limited numbers of replications and non-destructive experimental approaches to do the best they can to answer urgent research questions."

The authors say the Serianthes nelsonii case study demonstrates the importance of adaptive management. Management decisions in any discipline need to be informed by relevant knowledge. But when an endangered species has not received appreciable historical research, that knowledge does not exist. In these situations, reducing extinction risk requires that conservation programs adapt to a learn-as-you-go approach.

"In other words, there is no species-specific playbook in the beginning," Deloso said. "Practitioners need to write the playbook as the status of knowledge can be recalibrated with each successive grant or contract."

These realities are at the root of why international conservation experts advocate for inclusion of published research scientists in funded conservation projects. When this is done, implementation of the conservation measures will include experimental and observational approaches that generate new knowledge to improve subsequent decisions.

Much learned in a short amount of time

In an effort to fast-track knowledge of the tree's extinction risks and inform conservation protocols, the Plant Physiology Laboratory at the University of Guam has generated a flurry of publications in the past five years.

Additionally, their systematic review of prior research has illuminated the urgency of addressing plant mortality, in particular, in future conservation research.

Since the national recovery was implemented 26 years ago, the natural mature tree population has declined 60%. Similarly, the numerous projects that were funded in that time to propagate plants and increase the tree population were characterized by extensive post-transplant mortality. This widespread tree death in natural forest settings has occurred without the inclusion of research scientists to observe the plant behavior, so the reasons for the ongoing mortality remain elusive.

One of UOG's first discoveries was that regeneration potential of the tree is considerable, a finding that refuted the long-standing belief that inadequate regeneration was among the defining extinction risks.

"It was gratifying to be involved in our choreographed trials designed to understand the seasonal aspects of seedling emergence and longevity traits," Cascasan said. "The decades-long belief that regeneration failure was a conservation limitation was inaccurate, as we revealed that recruitment from the seedling to the sapling stage was the primary limitation to population growth."

Deloso said these results on nursery and physiology issues are indicative of what can be learned in a short amount of time.

"The same can be achieved for the remaining unanswered questions if a change in methods is implemented, such that published academic scientists begin to be included in all funded conservation projects," he said.

DNA sequencing has become so common, few realize how hard it is to even extract a single molecule of DNA from a biological sample.

Research led by UC Riverside is making it easier to detect and capture DNA from fluid samples such as blood using a tiny glass tube and electric current. The technique, described in the journal, Nanoscale, can also improve cancer diagnosis in the future.

DNA, a double-stranded, electrically charged molecule that contains all the information an organism needs to create and organize the building blocks of life, is tightly folded within the cell nucleus. Extracting the DNA from a single cell is time consuming and impractical for many medical and scientific purposes. Fortunately, as cells die naturally, their membranes burst, releasing the contents, including DNA. This means that a blood sample, for example, contains many strands of free-floating DNA that should, in theory, be easier to identify and extract in quantity.

However, scavenger cells called macrophages that clean up cellular waste destroy most cell-free DNA, leaving it at low concentrations in the blood. Most approaches to capturing cell-free DNA require expensive techniques that first concentrate the molecules before using fluorescent dyes to help see the DNA.

Corresponding author Kevin Freedman, an assistant professor of bioengineering at UC Riverside's Marlan and Rosemary Bourns College of Engineering, led an effort to improve detection and capture of DNA at lower concentrations by using an electric charge to direct a DNA sample directly into a glass tube with a tiny opening called a nanopore. Nanopore sensing has emerged as a fast, reliable, and cost-effective diagnosis tool in different medical and clinical applications.

"We know that if you apply voltage across a cell membrane, ions will move through pores in the cell membrane," Freedman said. "DNA also travels with the electric field, and we can use it to move the DNA."

The researchers put a positive electrode inside a glass tube with an opening, or pore, 20 nanometers wide -- a bit bigger than a DNA molecule but too small to admit cells. They applied an electrical potential to the nanopore, which was dipped into a vial containing a DNA sample and a negative electrode. The cell-free DNA moved into the pore and blocked it. The change in electrical current as the DNA traveled through the pore allowed the researchers to detect it.

"It's like trying to pull spaghetti through a needle," Freedman said. "To go through the pore it has to be almost perfectly linear."

The closer to the liquid surface the researchers held the pore, the more DNA it picked up.

"Amazingly, we found that DNA accumulates at the liquid-air interfaces. If there is a cooling layer, the DNA will try to go to the cooler location," Freedman said. "We hope the same is true for a blood sample, so the same mechanism can be used to concentrate DNA near the surface. Not only is this beneficial, but this nanopore-sensing strategy demonstrated a higher signal-to-noise ratio near the surface as well. It is really a win-win situation."

With some refinements, the authors think their purely electric technique could help diagnose some kinds of cancer from a single blood sample. In addition to DNA, as tumors grow, vesicles are released into the blood stream. These mini lipid-based droplets can be thought of as mini-cells that are identical to the original cancer cells and could also be detected by nanopore sensing.

Considering all the unique features of this purely electrical technique, the nanopore-sensing system has the potential to be utilized as a point-of-care diagnostic test evaluation in the future.

Tsukuba, Japan - Many life forms use light as an important biological signal, including animals with visual and non-visual systems. But now, researchers from Japan have found that neuronal cells may have initially evolved to regulate digestion according to light information.

In a study published this month in BMC Biology, researchers from the University of Tsukuba have revealed that sea urchins use light to regulate the opening and closing of the pylorus, which is an important component of the digestive tract.

Light-dependent systems often rely on the activity of proteins in the Opsin family, and these are found across the animal kingdom, including in organisms with visual and non-visual systems. Understanding the function of Opsins in animals from different taxonomic groups may provide important clues regarding how visual/non-visual systems evolved in different creatures to use light as an external signal. The function of Opsins in the Ambulacraria groups of animals, which include sea urchins, has not been characterized, something the researchers aimed to address.

"The functions of eyes and visual systems have been well-characterized," says senior author of the study Professor Shunsuke Yaguchi. "However, the way in which light dependent systems were acquired and diversified throughout evolution is unclear especially in deuterostomes because of the lack of data regarding the signaling pathway in the Ambulacraria group."

To address this, the researchers tested whether light exposure caused changes in digestive tract activity in sea urchins. They then conducted micro-surgical and genetic knockdown experiments to test whether Opsin cells in the sea urchin digestive system mediated the effect of light.

"The results provided new information about the role of Opsins in sea urchins," explains Professor Yaguchi. "Specifically, we found that stimulation of sea urchin larvae via light caused changes in digestive system function, even in the absence of food stimuli."

Furthermore, the researchers identified brain serotonergic neurons near the Opsin-expressing cells that were essential for mediating the light-stimulated release of nitric oxide, which acts as a neurotransmitter.

"Our results have important implications for understanding the process of evolution, specifically, that of light-dependent systems controlled via neurotransmitters," says Professor Yaguchi.

The data indicate that an early function of brain neurons may have been the regulation of the digestive tract in our evolutionary ancestors. Because food consumption and nutrient absorption are critical to survival, the development of a sophisticated brain-gut regulatory system may have been a major step in animal evolution.

For the implementation of the effective hydrogen economy in the forthcoming years, hydrogen produced from sources like coal and petroleum must be transported from its production sites to the end user often over long distances and to achieve successful hydrogen trade between countries. Drs. Hyuntae Sohn and Changwon Yoon and their team at the Center for Hydrogen-fuel Cell Research of the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) have announced a novel nanometal catalyst, constituting 60% less *ruthenium (Ru), an expensive precious metal used to extract hydrogen via ammonia decomposition.

*Ruthenium is a metal with the atomic number 44, and is a hard, expensive, silvery-white member of the platinum group of elements.

Ammonia has recently emerged as a liquid storage and transport medium that has shown promising stability for long-distance hydrogen transport. At 108 kg H2/m3, liquefied ammonia (NH3) can store 50% more hydrogen than liquid hydrogen. When ammonia is decomposed at high temperatures, only hydrogen and nitrogen gases are produced, with minimal carbon dioxide emissions. Because over 200 million tons of ammonia is currently produced annually for industrial use around the globe, the infrastructure for its mass storage and long-distance transport already exists and can simply be re-purposed for hydrogen transport.

The need for a lot of heat has been a pressing issue thwarting the widespread adoption of ammonia for use in hydrogen transport and storage, however. The decomposition reaction through which hydrogen is extracted from ammonia can only proceed at high temperaturewhich requires high energy input. A catalyst in the form of a solid powder can be added during the decomposition reaction to lower the reaction temperature; however, the existing ruthenium-metal-based catalysts are very expensive and have low stability, thus requiring regular replacement.

The KIST research team has developed a catalyst for hydrogen production from ammonia decomposition in which ruthenium metal particles and **zeolite are strongly bound by calcination under vacuum, which results in the containment of sub-nanometer and nanometer (one billionth of a meter) ruthenium metal particles in each pore of the zeolite support. This novel catalyst exhibits 2.5-times higher ammonia decomposition performance than conventional commercial catalysts and achieves this efficiency while using only 40% of ruthenium metal. Because nanometer-sized (or smaller) ruthenium metal particles are present and maintain their stability during the ammonia decomposition process even at high reaction temperatures, the use of the proposed catalyst can overcome the problem of low stability, which has been significantly limiting the commercialization of existing catalysts.

** Zeolite is a mixed oxide of silicon and aluminum, which is a type of crystalline mineral connected by nanometer-level pores. It is often used as a catalyst support and exists in a structure in which pores having the size on the order of several nanometers to tens of nanometers are connected, depending on the type.

"The developed catalyst has an advantageous structure in that the nanometer-sized ruthenium metal particles are uniformly spread over zeolite, a crystalline mineral. Thus, this catalyst has shown higher performance and stability than previously reported catalysts and is expected to facilitate the commercialization of the process for high-purity hydrogen production from ammonia," said Dr. Hyuntae Sohn, KIST. "The importance of large-capacity hydrogen transport based on ammonia is rapidly increasing, with fierce competition among advanced countries over the development and acquisition of related technologies. The application of the proposed catalyst for large-capacity hydrogen production via ammonia decomposition, which is currently under research and development, will ultimately help the commercialization of ammonia-derived hydrogen and the large-capacity hydrogen transportation between countries," said Dr. Changwon Yoon.

The world's first ground-based observations of the bare nucleus of a comet nearing the end of its active life revealed that the nucleus has a diameter of 800 meters and is covered with large grains of phyllosilicate; on Earth large grains of phyllosilicate are commonly available as talcum powder. This discovery provides clues to piece together the history of how this comet evolved into its current burnt-out state.

Comet nuclei are difficult to observe because when they enter the inner Solar System, where they are easy to observe from Earth, they heat up and release gas and dust which form a coma obscuring the nuclei. When Comet P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) was discovered in January 2016 it was first mistaken for an asteroid, but subsequent observations revealed weak cometary activity. It is believed that after many trips through the inner Solar System, this comet has burnt off almost all of its ice and is now nearing the end of its cometary life.

On March 22, 2016, this comet passed within 3.6 million kilometers of Earth, only 9 times farther than the Moon. A team of astronomers from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) and Koyama Astronomical Observatory of Kyoto Sangyo University used this unique opportunity to observe the comet with the Subaru Telescope about 30 hours before its closest approach to Earth. They successfully observed the nucleus with minimal interference from dust grains in the coma. Previously, the surface composition of a cometary nucleus has only been observed by a few "in-situ" observations by space missions.

Because the team observed thermal infrared radiation, the same region of the infrared used by contactless thermometers, they were able to find evidence that the nucleus is 800 meters in diameter and covered with organic molecules and large grains of phyllosilicate. This is the first time hydrous silicate minerals such as talc have been found in a comet. Comparison with laboratory measurements of various minerals revealed that the hydrous silicate minerals on the surface of P/2016 BA14 have been heated to more than about 330 degrees Celsius in the past. Since the surface temperature of P/2016 BA14 cannot reach higher than about 130 degrees Celsius in its current orbit, the comet may have been in an orbit closer to the Sun in the past.

The next question is whether comets are covered with talcum powder from the start or if it develops over time as they burn out. "This result provides us a precious clue to study the evolution of comets." comments Dr. Takafumi Ootsubo, the lead author of this research, "We believe that further observations of the comet nuclei will enable us to learn more about the evolution of comets."

Even a well-characterized genome, such as that of the Drosophila the so-called fruit fly, still holds surprises. A team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, in collaboration with Cornell University (USA) and the University of Groningen (Netherlands), has discovered an RNA coding for a micro-peptide - a very small protein - that plays a crucial role in the competition between spermatozoa from different males with which the female mates. In addition to shedding new light on this biological mechanism, this work, to be read in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), highlights the importance of small peptides, a class of proteins that is now emerging as a key player in complex biological processes.

In many species, including insects, mating induces physiological changes in the female aimed at the reproductive success of the couple. This response is induced by substances in the male's seminal fluid that interact with the female's reproductive system. These post-coital changes include increased ovulation and egg laying, semen storage and release, dietary changes and gut growth. A mated female also becomes less receptive to other males and can use the semen stored in her spermatheca from her first intercourse for many days. However, this behavior is counterbalanced by the "last male preference" phenomenon. Indeed, despite the decrease in libido normally induced by a first mating, females sometimes decide to mate with a new, healthier or stronger male, probably in order to have more robust offspring. In this case, the semen of the first male is expelled and only that of the last male is kept.

A small peptide with a big role in sperm selection

The authors of this study have studied this phenomenon in Drosophila, the small fly that lingers around overripe or rotting fruit. This model organism, very popular with researchers for genetic and developmental studies, allows for easy observation and study of reproductive behavior. The biologists analyzed the proteins produced by the accessory functional gland, homolog of the human prostate. "Among the proteins we identified as essential for a normal response after mating is a micro-peptide, a very small protein that had never been studied before, as the RNA that codes for it was considered 'non-coding'", says Clément Immarigeon, first author of this study conducted in the Department of Genetics and Evolution of the Faculty of Science at UNIGE.

In order to verify if this peptide finally played a determining role, the researchers created mutants that no longer possess it. In females first mated by a mutant male, the phenomenon of "last male preference" is no longer observed. Indeed, if they are then mated by another male, they lay eggs fertilized by the sperm of both males, and not exclusively by the last progenitor, which could reduce the robustness of their offspring. "To our surprise, we found that this micro-peptide - encoded by a putative non-coding transcript - performs important reproductive functions. Such micro-peptides were not previously recognized but are emerging as important players in complex biological processes", summarizes Robert Maeda, researcher in the Department of Genetics and Evolution at UNIGE and last author of the study.

Towards the sterile insect

The study of these mating-induced phenomena is of particular interest in certain insect species responsible for sanitary, economic or environmental problems. A biological alternative to non-selective insecticides is the "sterile insect" method, which limits harmful populations by releasing millions of sterilized males into the wild to prevent females from mating with fertile wild males. A better understanding of the post-mating response will allow the development of even more effective biological control methods.

A research group at KAIST has engineered a bacterium capable of producing a natural red colorant, carminic acid, which is widely used for food and cosmetics. The research team reported the complete biosynthesis of carminic acid from glucose in engineered Escherichia coli. The strategies will be useful for the design and construction of biosynthetic pathways involving unknown enzymes and consequently the production of diverse industrially important natural products for the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries.

Carminic acid is a natural red colorant widely being used for products such as strawberry milk and lipstick. However, carminic acid has been produced by farming cochineals, a scale insect which only grows in the region around Peru and Canary Islands, followed by complicated multi-step purification processes. Moreover, carminic acid often contains protein contaminants that cause allergies so many people are unwilling to consume products made of insect-driven colorants. On that account, manufacturers around the world are using alternative red colorants despite the fact that carminic acid is one of the most stable natural red colorants.

These challenges inspired the metabolic engineering research group at KAIST to address this issue. Its members include postdoctoral researchers Dongsoo Yang and Woo Dae Jang, and Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. This study entitled "Production of carminic acid by metabolically engineered Escherichia coli" was published online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS) on April 2.

This research reports for the first time the development of a bacterial strain capable of producing carminic acid from glucose via metabolic engineering and computer simulation-assisted enzyme engineering. The research group optimized the type II polyketide synthase machinery to efficiently produce the precursor of carminic acid, flavokermesic acid.

Since the enzymes responsible for the remaining two reactions were neither discovered nor functional, biochemical reaction analysis was performed to identify enzymes that can convert flavokermesic acid into carminic acid. Then, homology modeling and docking simulations were performed to enhance the activities of the two identified enzymes. The team could confirm that the final engineered strain could produce carminic acid directly from glucose. The C-glucosyltransferase developed in this study was found to be generally applicable for other natural products as showcased by the successful production of an additional product, aloesin, which is found in aloe leaves.

"The most important part of this research is that unknown enzymes for the production of target natural products were identified and improved by biochemical reaction analyses and computer simulation-assisted enzyme engineering," says Dr. Dongsoo Yang. He explained the development of a generally applicable C-glucosyltransferase is also useful since C-glucosylation is a relatively unexplored reaction in bacteria including Escherichia coli. Using the C-glucosyltransferase developed in this study, both carminic acid and aloesin were successfully produced from glucose.

"A sustainable and insect-free method of producing carminic acid was achieved for the first time in this study. Unknown or inefficient enzymes have always been a major problem in natural product biosynthesis, and here we suggest one effective solution for solving this problem. As maintaining good health in the aging society is becoming increasingly important, we expect that the technology and strategies developed here will play pivotal roles in producing other valuable natural products of medical or nutritional importance," said Distinguished Professor Sang Yup Lee.

The idea of implantable sensors that continuously transmit information on vital values and concentrations of substances or drugs in the body has fascinated physicians and scientists for a long time. Such sensors enable the constant monitoring of disease progression and therapeutic success. However, until now implantable sensors have not been suitable to remain in the body permanently but had to be replaced after a few days or weeks. On the one hand, there is the problem of implant rejection because the body recognizes the sensor as a foreign object. On the other hand, the sensor's color which indicates concentration changes has been unstable so far and faded over time. Scientists at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have developed a novel type of implantable sensor which can be operated in the body for several months. The sensor is based on color-stable gold nanoparticles that are modified with receptors for specific molecules. Embedded into an artificial polymeric tissue, the nanogold is implanted under the skin where it reports changes in drug concentrations by changing its color.

Implant reports information as an "invisible tattoo"

Professor Carsten Soennichsen's research group at JGU has been using gold nanoparticles as sensors to detect tiny amounts of proteins in microscopic flow cells for many years. Gold nanoparticles act as small antennas for light: They strongly absorb and scatter it and, therefore, appear colorful. They react to alterations in their surrounding by changing color. Soennichsen's team has exploited this concept for implanted medical sensing.

To prevent the tiny particles from swimming away or being degraded by immune cells, they are embedded in a porous hydrogel with a tissue-like consistency. Once implanted under the skin, small blood vessels and cells grow into the pores. The sensor is integrated in the tissue and is not rejected as a foreign body. "Our sensor is like an invisible tattoo, not much bigger than a penny and thinner than one millimeter," said Professor Carsten Soennichsen, head of the Nanobiotechnology Group at JGU. Since the gold nanoparticles are infrared, they are not visible to the eye. However, a special kind of measurement device can detect their color noninvasively through the skin.

In their study published in Nano Letters, the JGU researchers implanted their gold nanoparticle sensors under the skin of hairless rats. Color changes in these sensors were monitored following the administration of various doses of an antibiotic. The drug molecules are transported to the sensor via the bloodstream. By binding to specific receptors on the surface of the gold nanoparticles, they induce color change that is dependent on drug concentration. Thanks to the color-stable gold nanoparticles and the tissue-integrating hydrogel, the sensor was found to remain mechanically and optically stable over several months.

Huge potential of gold nanoparticles as long-lasting implantable medical sensors

"We are used to colored objects bleaching over time. Gold nanoparticles, however, do not bleach but keep their color permanently. As they can be easily coated with various different receptors, they are an ideal platform for implantable sensors," explained Dr. Katharina Kaefer, first author of the study.

The novel concept is generalizable and has the potential to extend the lifetime of implantable sensors. In future, gold nanoparticle-based implantable sensors could be used to observe concentrations of different biomarkers or drugs in the body simultaneously. Such sensors could find application in drug development, medical research, or personalized medicine, such as the management of chronic diseases.

Interdisciplinary team work brought success

Soennichsen had the idea of using gold nanoparticles as implanted sensors already in 2004 when he started his research in biophysical chemistry as a junior professor in Mainz. However, the project was not realized until ten years later in cooperation with Dr. Thies Schroeder and Dr. Katharina Kaefer, both scientists at JGU. Schroeder was experienced in biological research and laboratory animal science and had already completed several years of research work in the USA. Kaefer was looking for an exciting topic for her doctorate and was particularly interested in the complex and interdisciplinary nature of the project. Initial results led to a stipend awarded to Kaefer by the Max Planck Graduate Center (MPGC) as well as financial support from Stiftung Rheinland-Pfalz für Innovation. "Such a project requires many people with different scientific backgrounds. Step by step we were able to convince more and more people of our idea," said Soennichsen happily. Ultimately, it was interdisciplinary teamwork that resulted in the successful development of the first functional implanted sensor with gold nanoparticles.