Tech

Volume 11, Issue 25 of @Oncotarget reported that to examine the role of RSK in AML, the authors analyzed apoptosis and the cell cycle profile following treatment with BI-D1870, a potent inhibitor of RSK. BI-D1870 treatment increased the G2/M population and induced apoptosis in Acute Myeloid Leukemia cell lines and patient Acute Myeloid Leukemia cells.

Therefore, the authors investigated whether BI-D1870 potentiates the anti-leukemic activity of vincristine by targeting mitotic exit.

Combination treatment of BI-D1870 and vincristine synergistically increased mitotic arrest and apoptosis in acute leukemia cells.

These data show that BI-D1870 induces apoptosis of AML cells alone and in combination with vincristine through blocking mitotic exit, providing a novel approach to overcoming vincristine resistance in AML cells.

"Data show that BI-D1870 induces apoptosis of AML cells alone and in combination with vincristine through blocking mitotic exit"

Dr. Kathleen M. Sakamoto from Stanford University School of Medicine said, "Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a genetically and phenotypically heterogeneous hematologic malignancy characterized by the accumulation of immature myeloid blasts with resultant peripheral blood cytopenia."

Treatment of cells with microtubule targeting agents, including paclitaxel and the vinca alkaloid vincristine, blocks the proper formation of the mitotic spindle through inhibition of microtubule dynamics, resulting in the prolonged mitotic arrest of cancer cells.

MTAs-treated mitotic arrested cells may undergo apoptosis in mitosis, however, the rapid degradation of Cyclin B due to an insufficient SAC leads to the mitotic slippage into tetraploid G1 stage in resistant cells.

Though vinca alkaloid microtubule-destabilizing compounds have shown clinical efficacy against various hematological malignancies and were included in combination chemotherapy of the VAPA study, they are not currently used in induction chemotherapy for AML due to their high toxicity against lymphoid cells and rapid degradation by myeloperoxidase in AML cells.

In this study, they demonstrate that BI-D1870, a potent inhibitor of RSK, induces mitotic arrest, and apoptosis in AML cells without inhibiting CDC2 and CDC25C. Furthermore, BI-D1870 synergizes with vinca alkaloid vincristine in AML cells, suggesting that inhibition of mitotic exit with BI-D1870 could be a promising novel approach for AML therapy in combination with MTAs.

The Sakamoto Research Team concluded in their Oncotarget Research Paper that BI-D1870 is a reversible pan-RSK inhibitor, showing > 500-fold higher activity for RSK than other AGC kinases.

BI-D1870 also inhibits the activity of PLK1, Aurora-B, MELK, PIM3, MST2, and GSK3β at higher concentrations than for RSK. BI-D1870 and BRD7389 have been reported to inhibit proliferation and significantly increase the G2/M population in melanoma cells.

BI-D1870 does not have proper physicochemical properties for clinical application.

Future structure-activity relationships study for BI-D1870 is required to improve solubility and pharmacokinetic profiles for in vivo preclinical and clinical studies.

Volume 11 Issue 25 of @Oncotarget reported that the authors aimed to characterize the bacteriome, mycobiome, and mycobiome-bacteriome interactions of oral wash in Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, or HNSCC, patients and to determine if they are distinct from those of the oral wash of matched non-Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma patients.

Oral wash samples were collected from 46 individuals with HNSCC and 46 controls for microbiome analyses.

A number of organisms were identified as being differentially abundant between oral wash samples from patients with HNSCC and oral wash samples from those without HNSCC. Of note, strains of Candida albicans and Rothia mucilaginosa were differentially abundant and Schizophyllum commune was depleted in those with HNSCC compared to oral wash from those without HNSCC. Our results suggest that the oral cavity of HNSCC patients harbors unique differences in the mycobiome, bacteriome, and microbiome interactions when compared to those of control patients.

Dr. Charis Eng from The Cleveland Clinic as well as The Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine said, "Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) refers to cancer arising from the squamous epithelium of the oral cavity, pharynx, nasopharynx, and larynx."

Not all patients with these risk factors develop HNSCC, and some patients with HSNCC lack these risk factors.

There is, therefore, a need to identify additional risk factors to better predict which patients, particularly among those at high risk, will develop HNSCC. The oral microbiome contains not only bacterial communities but also fungal communities comprising the oral mycobiome.

Fungal communities have the potential not only to independently influence the environment of the oral cavity but also to interact with oral bacterial communities.

Therefore, the authors sought to identify and characterize differences in the bacteriome and mycobiome profiles of patients with HNSCC versus healthy cancer-free patients, using oral wash as template biospecimen.

The Eng Research Team concluded in their Oncotarget Research Paper that they found inter and intra-kingdom correlations within the oral wash.

Although the composition of the clusters within networks appeared largely similar between case and control oral wash, there were some interactions that differed.

A positive relationship between two organisms could suggest that they occupy similar niches or even that they share a symbiotic relationship.

A negative relationship, by contrast, could point to two organisms that either compete against each other through varying means.

They went on to note multiple interactions that were opposing when considering case oral wash versus control oral wash suggests not only changes in the composition of the microbiome but also in how members of the microbiome interact with each other in HNSCC patients.

The relationship between Alloscardovia and Candida, for example, was negative, in case oral wash but positive in control oral wash.

Such shifts could signal the presence of HNSCC in an oral wash based screening tool for Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

"Such shifts could signal the presence of HNSCC in an oral wash based screening tool for Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma"

San Francisco (June 22, 2020) -- As part of the Company's ongoing engagement with the public health community, Juul Labs today announced findings from its sciences and research program at the 82nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence. The studies presented evaluate the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profile of the JUUL System compared to other nicotine delivery products.

Consistent with previous clinical studies conducted by Juul Labs, the data demonstrated a nicotine absorption curve for the JUUL System that is competitive with a combustible cigarette but with a lower maximum blood nicotine concentration and total nicotine exposure compared to combustible cigarettes. The JUUL System's nicotine absorption curve was in close range of select comparator ENDS and a heated tobacco product.

Below are the Juul-sponsored studies that were shared at the conference:

Pharmacokinetics and Subjective Effects of the JL Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) Compared to Five ENDS, a Heated Tobacco Product, and a Combustible Cigarette.

Abuse Liability Assessment of JL Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) in Two Nicotine Concentrations Compared to Usual Brand Cigarette, Nicotine Gum and a Comparator ENDS

"When considering laws and regulations governing nicotine, policymakers should bear in mind: Providing a similar nicotine effect and experience to combustible cigarettes is critical to facilitate an adult smoker's transition away from smoking," said Mark Rubinstein, Vice President of Global Scientific Affairs at Juul Labs.

The Company will continue to share results from its science and research program with the public health communities as it works to support the scientific basis for the category, as well as future regulatory filings.

Fertigation allows for simultaneously applying the necessary water and fertilizers via irrigation systems. It offers significant advantages compared to other traditional methods, though it requires precise calculations in order to be ideally used and managed, without using more fertilizer than the crop actually needs.

The Hydraulics and Irrigation research team at the University of Cordoba has just launched a mobile app called Reutivar App that lets farmers control and measure the ideal amount of water and fertilizers to be used in these kinds of irrigation systems. The purpose of this tool is to equip fertigation with scientific criteria and aims, a practice that is becoming more and more common but that, at times, can result in excessive use of fertilizers, such as nitrogen, which have a negative impact on the environment.

The research, carried out as the basis of PhD work for researcher Carmen Alcaide and on which also participate researchers Rafael González, Irene Fernández, Emilio Camacho and Juan Antonio Rodríguez, is focused on olive orchards, key in southern Spain's economy and the crop with the largest area to irrigate in addition to being the crop with the largest water demand in the Guadalquivir basin. Besides, the research is based on using reclaimed water for agricultural use. This reclaimed water already has some macronutrient content and reusing it has become a strategic course of action in the EU within the bioeconomy, enabling us to deal with water shortages, among other things.

The application, developed with real data on water quality at a pilot plant located in Montilla (in the province of Córdoba), offers water users an irrigation and fertilizing calendar in real time, including the ideal amount of manure recommended. In order to do so, a series of calculations must be done using baseline data such as development and nutritional condition of the tree, past records and even weather forecasts.

The tool "lets us reduce the use of fertilizers, apply a controlled form of irrigation and properly distribute resources throughout the season", points out Professor Juan Antonio Rodríguez, so "not only will this provide environmental benefits but also financial ones for water users", he concludes.

HANOVER, N.H. - June 23, 2020 - A research project that aims to help people that are blind or that have other visual impairments learn computer circuit design was recognized recently by a global conference on human-computer interaction.

The Dartmouth study, "TangibleCircuits: An Interactive 3D Printed Circuit Education Tool for People with Visual Impairments," allows users to interact with models of circuit boards that provide audio feedback in response to being touched.

The research received an honorable mention award from the annual conference of the Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Computer Human Interaction (CHI2020).

"This is a powerful tool that can help people with visual impairments learn electronics," said Xing-Dong Yang, an assistant professor of computer science and the senior researcher on the paper. "Through innovations like this, we hope that visually-impaired people will no longer miss out on education opportunities and high-tech careers."

According to the research team, web-based tutorials that teach novices how to make circuits are not accessible to everybody. As an example, many existing tools rely heavily on visual information for instruction, making them difficult to use for those who are blind or otherwise visually impaired.

While many accessibility tools already exist, most do not enable users that are blind or visually impaired to create their own accessibility tools.

The Dartmouth research uses an inexpensive practice circuit board that can be accessed by computer hobbyists and students. The design is intended to broaden the inclusivity and accessibility of maker spaces and engineering classrooms by allowing instructors to create cheap, portable, and easy-to-use tutorials.

"We spent substantial time interviewing some amazing engineers and students with visual impairments before we created our system," said Josh Urban Davis, the lead author of the paper and a PhD student at Dartmouth. "We really wanted to get the design right since something like this could dramatically change people's lives."

The research is one of ten studies involving Dartmouth-affiliated researchers that were accepted by CHI2020.

A narrative-based smartphone application that promotes physical activity by visualizing and tying together the progress of the user with that of the app's main character was awarded a best paper award by the conference. The first author of the study, Elizabeth Murnane, will become the Charles H. Gaut & Charles A. Norberg Assistant Professor of Engineering at Thayer School of Engineering during the summer of 2020.

"Personal technology holds tremendous potential to help tackle public health challenges rooted in human behavior, but the conventional style of quantitative feedback most apps deliver is confusing and unmotivating for a majority of people," said Murnane, currently a postdoctoral scholar in the Human-Computer Interaction group at Stanford University. "Our research to develop data-driven stories shows the power of more richly qualitative approaches in positively shaping actions and attitudes."

Other projects presented at CHI2020 by Dartmouth-affiliated researchers include the use of interactive fabrics, innovations for eyes-free interaction with devices, technology that addresses mental health challenges, and a study focusing on how women respond to social cues in online STEM courses.

"Human-computer interaction is a diverse and growing research community at Dartmouth. People can expect a lot of cool things from us in the future," said Yang.

Air pollution, especially the particulate matter in the atmosphere, can result in poor air quality and visibility, posing a risk to human health and transportation safety. Now, a team of researchers in China has improved the method to obtain mass concentrations of particulate matter from widely measured humidity and visibility data.

The results were published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

The researchers specifically examined mass concentrations of PM2.5, which is particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 micrometers -- roughly the size of one seventh of a pollen grain.

"Particulate matter, especially PM2.5, is of great concern to both public and scientific communities in recent years," said the corresponding author, Zhaoze Deng from the Key Laboratory of Middle Atmosphere and Global environment Observation (LAEGO), the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). "The number of observational stations that measure particulate matter mass concentrations keeps increasing. However, they are mainly located in urban areas, and the period of monitoring is very limited for most of them."

By extending the available data to include larger spatial and temporal coverage, a broader understanding of how particulate matter evolves could emerge, according to Deng. That could be especially helpful when it comes to visibility in daily life. The distance a person can see, such as a pilot flying an airplane, is directly linked to particulate matter mass concentrations

"Atmospheric visibility is a measure for light extinction that is mainly caused by particles suspended in the atmosphere," said first author Denghui Ji, who is also affiliated with LAGEO, IAP and CAS. "At high ambient relative humidity (RH), visibility is not only influenced by dry particles, but also by water condensed on particles."

By understanding the relationship among relative humidity, visibility and particulate matter mass concentrations, the researchers developed a method to estimate the mass concentrations using only routine measurements of RH and visibility. Although the spatial and temporal coverage of particulate matter mass concentration measurements is limited, long-term measurements of relative humidity and visibility is available for many locations.

"The proposed method performed well for the dataset in this study," Deng said, referring to data obtained from a field campaign carried out in January 2019 in southwest China. "We would like to further investigate its performance in other seasons and also other locations. Parameters characterizing the relationship might vary and need to be localized."

The goal, according to Deng, is to apply this method to generate datasets of particulate matter mass concentrations based on extensive ground-level visibility data from meteorological stations or optical data from satellites. Eventually, the datasets could help finetune mass concentration estimations for other readily available measurements.

Since the end of the 19th century, transition metal carbonyls have been an important and familiar class of compound in coordination chemistry and organometallic chemistry. In these materials, carbon monoxide molecules (CO) are bound to transition metals as the central atom. In this subject area, the team of Prof. Dr. Ingo Krossing and Wiebke Unkrig of the Institute of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry at the University of Freiburg has succeeded in synthesizing brand-new transition metal carbonyl complexes - Ta2(CO)12 and M(CO)7+, where the metal atoms M are Niobium (Nb) and Tantalum (Ta). In many aspects, these substances go beyond current compound limits. As a result, they transcend new chemical frontiers that are relevant for practical use as well as basic science. The researchers have published their results in the scientific journal Nature Chemistry.

They have synthesized the dinuclear compound Ta2(CO)12 - which is considered the first new, neutral carbonyl complex to be synthesized in the 21st century. What is more, they managed to "bottle" positively charged carbonyl complexes with seven CO ligands by combination with a weakly-coordinating anion as a stable substance. No matter which of the thirty known transition metals were used, until now, complex compounds with more than six CO molecules were not accessible in substance. Evidence for such molecules was observed only in the gas phase.

The bonding modes of these types of complexes is not fully explained. Many of the compounds in the new, positively-charged class of substances are as yet unknown. For many years, Krossing and Unkrig's working group has been investigating weakly-coordinating anions that allow them to approximate the conditions of the gaseous state. They now aim to synthesize such prototypical, positively-charged molecules as "bottleable" substances in condensed form, in order to investigate them using a variety of methods. The researchers would then be able to demonstrate that these substances can play a role in applied chemistry in addition to serving as examples in textbooks.

Krossing has been directing the Chair of Molecular and Coordination Chemistry at the Institute of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry at the University of Freiburg and is a member of the Freiburg Materials Research Center (FMF) and the Freiburg Center for Interactive Materials and Bioinspired Technologies (FIT). His colleague, Unkrig has been working on her doctorate on the subject of "Homoleptic and Heteroleptic Carbonyl Complexes of the Early Transition Metals" within the group since 2016.

With the imminent threat of a climate crisis hanging over our heads, it has become crucial to develop efficient alternatives to fossil fuels. One option is to use clean sources of fuels called biofuels, which can be produced from natural sources such as biomass. The plant-based polymer cellulose is the most abundant form of biomass globally and can be converted into raw materials such as glucose and xylose for the production of bioethanol (a type of biofuel). But, this process is challenging owing to the molecule's rigid and dense structure, which makes it insoluble in water. Chemists and biotechnologists globally have used conventional techniques like microwave radiation, hydrolysis, and ultrasonication to degrade this polymer, but these processes require extreme conditions and are thus unsustainable.

To this end, in a new study published in Energy & Fuels, a research team in Japan, including Dr Takayasu Kawasaki (Tokyo University of Science), Dr Heishun Zen (Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University), Prof Yasushi Hayakawa (Laboratory of Electron Beam Research and Application, Institute of Quantum Science, Nihon University), Prof Toshiaki Ohta (SR Center, Ritsumeikan University), and Prof Koichi Tsukiyama (Tokyo University of Science), developed a novel technique for cellulose degradation. This technique was based on a type of laser called the infrared-free electron laser (IR-FEL), whose wavelength is tunable in the range of 3 to 20 μm. This new method is a promising green technology for the zero-emission degradation of cellulose. Dr Kawasaki says, "One of the unique features of the IR-FEL is that it can induce a multiphoton absorption for a molecule and can modify the structure of a substance. So far, this technology has been used in the basic fields of physics, chemistry, and medicine, but we wanted to use to spur advances in environmental technology."

The scientists knew that IR-FEL could be used to perform dissociation reactions on various biomolecules. Cellulose is a biopolymer composed of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen molecules, which form covalent bonds of varying lengths and angles with each other. The polymer has three infrared bands at the wavelengths of 9.1, 7.2, and 3.5 μm, which correspond to three different bonds: the C-O stretching mode, H-C-O bending mode, and C-H stretching mode, respectively. Based on this, the scientists irradiated powdered cellulose by tuning the wavelength of the IR-FEL to these three wavelengths. Then, they analyzed the products using techniques such as electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and synchrotron radiation infrared microscopy, which revealed that the cellulose molecules had successfully decomposed into glucose and cellobiose (precursor molecules for bioethanol production). Not just this, their products were obtained at high yields, making this process extremely efficient. Dr Kawasaki explains, "This was the first method in the world to efficiently obtain glucose from cellulose by using an IR-FEL. Because this method does not require harsh reaction conditions such as harmful organic solvents, high temperature, and high pressure, it is superior to other conventional methods."

Apart from generating biofuels, cellulose has several applications--for example, as functional biomaterials in biocompatible cell membranes, antibacterial sheets, and hybrid paper materials. Thus, the new method developed in this study shows promise for various industries, such as healthcare, technology, and engineering. Moreover, Dr Kawasaki is optimistic that their method is useful to process not only cellulose but also other wood constituents and can prove to be an innovative method for recycling forest biomass. He concludes, "We hope that this study will contribute to the development of an 'oil-free' society."

Freiburg biologists Dr. Anna Westermeier, Max Mylo, Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck and Dr. Simon Poppinga and Stuttgart structural engineer Renate Sachse and Prof. Dr. Manfred Bischoff show that the trap of the carnivorous plant is under mechanical prestress. In addition, its three tissue layers of each lobe have to deform according to a special pattern. The team has published its results in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA.

The diet of the Venus flytrap consists mainly of crawling insects. When the animals touch the sensory hairs inside the trap twice within about 20 seconds it snaps shut. Aspects such as how the trap perceives its prey and how it differentiates potential prey from a raindrop falling into the trap were already well known to scientists. However the precise morphing process of the halves of the trap remained largely unknown.

In order to gain a better understanding of these processes, the researchers have analyzed the interior and exterior surfaces of the trap using digital 3D image correlation methods. Scientists typically use these methods for the examination of technical materials. Using the results the team then constructed several virtual traps in a finite element simulation that differ in their tissue layer setups and in the mechanical behavior of the layers.

Only the digital traps that were under prestress displayed the typical snapping. The team confirmed this observation with dehydration tests on real plants: only well-watered traps are able to snap shut quickly and correctly by releasing this prestress. Watering the plant changed the pressure in the cells and with it the behavior of the tissue. In order to close correctly, the traps also had to consist of three layers of tissue: an inner which constricts, an outer which expands, and a neutral middle layer.

Speck and Mylo are members of the Living, Adaptive and Energy-autonomous Materials Systems (livMatS) cluster of excellence of the University of Freiburg. The Venus flytrap serves there as a model for a biomimetic demonstrator made of artificial materials being developed by researchers at the cluster. The scientists use it to test the potential uses of materials systems that have life-like characteristics: the systems adapt to changes in the environment and harvest the necessary energy from this environment.

Herd immunity to Covid-19 could be achieved with less people being infected than previously estimated according to new research.

Mathematicians from the University of Nottingham and University of Stockholm devised a simple model categorising people into groups reflecting age and social activity level. When differences in age and social activity are incorporated in the model, the herd immunity level reduces from 60% to 43%. The figure of 43% should be interpreted as an illustration rather than an exact value or even a best estimate. The research has been published today in Science.

Herd immunity happens when so many people in a community become immune to an infectious disease that is stops the disease from spreading. This happens by people contracting the disease and building up natural immunity and by people receiving a vaccine. When a large percentage of the population becomes immune to a disease, the spread of that disease slows down or stops and the chain of transmission is broken.

This research takes a new mathematical approach to estimating the herd immunity figure for a population to an infectious disease, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic. The herd immunity level is defined as the fraction of the population that must become immune for disease spreading to decline and stop when all preventive measures, such as social distancing, are lifted. For COVID-19 it is often stated that this is around 60%, a figure derived from the fraction of the population that must be vaccinated (in advance of an epidemic) to prevent a large outbreak.

The figure of 60% assumes that each individual in the population is equally likely to be vaccinated, and hence immune. However, that is not the case if immunity arises as a result of disease spreading in a population consisting of people with many different behaviours.

Professor Frank Ball from the University of Nottingham participated in the research and explains: "By taking this new mathematical approach to estimating the level for herd immunity to be achieved we found it could potentially be reduced to 43% and that this reduction is mainly due to activity level rather than age structure. The more socially active individuals are then the more likely they are to get infected than less socially active ones, and they are also more likely to infect people if they become infected. Consequently, the herd immunity level is lower when immunity is caused by disease spreading than when immunity comes from vaccination.

Our findings have potential consequences for the current COVID-19 pandemic and the release of lockdown and suggests that individual variation (e.g. in activity level) is an important feature to include in models that guide policy."

Our computers are becoming more and more powerful all the time. They also often become smaller - just think of what a standard smartphone can do today compared to just a few years ago.

But the development cannot last.

- With our current technology, we will soon reach the limit of how small the components within a computer can be, says Steffen Bähring from Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of Southern Denmark. He studies molecules and for this study he investigated how good they are at conducting electricity.

- The current technology based on silicon will reach the limit within the next 10 years and we do not yet have a technology ready to take over. But molecules are candidates to push the limit much further, he believes.

Together with international colleagues Jonathan L. Sessler (Texas, USA), Dirk M. Guldi (Erlangen, Germany) and Atanu Jana (Shanghai, China), he has just published a new scientific study on the composition of molecules in liquids and as crystalline materials which proved particularly interesting.

The study is published in the Journal of The American Chemical Society.

- We see really good conductivity qualities, which is an extremely important feature when talking about the development of electronic devices and computers of the future, he says.

He believes that if we want even more powerful computers than today, which also remain small, then the electronics have to transition to molecular dimensions, meaning the individual components will be under a nanometer in size.

The new "molecular wire", which the researchers describe in their article, is a good example and an elegant system, he believes.

Steffen Bähring explains the principle in the new molecular wire as follows:

This is the first time that only neutral molecules, which are capable of recognizing and finding each other in solution, are used, thus forming a well-defined three-dimensional structure having semiconductor properties. By inserting different components, we can modify the conductivity and thereby control the system.

Our system differs from previous ones, which are based on salts containing metals. These are not capable of forming different structures like our system.

One challenge in building electronic devices from molecules is that the molecular wires must have satisfactory conducting properties. But there is also another challenge: stability.

- It's extremely difficult to control things this small, and when we talk about molecular electronics, stability is the biggest weakness. These are electroactive materials, and when you supply them with energy, the molecules will be charged, and any weaknesses will cause the molecules to break, says Steffen Bähring.

Such molecular instability is also known in the world we can see. An example is how the molecules in our skin change when the skin absorbs energy from the sunlight if we do not protect it with sunscreen.

Moore's Law:
Since the 1960's, technological development has been predicted by Moore's law: The number of transistors on a microchip will double approximately every two years. However the limit of that development will be reached within a few years. Partly because of the extreme heat created when more transistors are pressed together in less space. That is why a whole new type of technology is needed.

Researchers from Russia and the Czech Republic performed numerical modelling of natural rock arcades using a mathematical model that describes a succession of arches forming as a result of weathering and then turning into rock pillars without human involvement, despite their striking resemblance to architectural arcades. The results of the study were published in the journal Geomorphology.

An architectural arcade is a succession of arches of the same shape and size, each supported by pillars. The Romans widely used arcades in aqueducts, viaducts, circuses, and amphitheaters, while in the Middle Ages, English and Italian architects used them in cathedrals and open galleries. Arcades are an architectural landmark of Bologna in Italy. Interestingly, similar structures can be found in nature, as testimony to rock evolution through the ages, driven by weathering and erosion.

A group of scientists from the Skoltech Center for Design, Manufacturing and Materials (CDMM) and Charles University (Czech Republic) modelled the processes leading to the formation of rock arcades due to erosion. The study used the rock erosion mechanism described earlier by the Czech and Skoltech scientists who had found that erosion in rock (sandstone, granite, quartzite, tuff, etc.) occurs in low-stress areas. It was shown that arcades appear in areas with discontinuities, such as cracks or thin layers of softer rock.

"In non-uniform rock, erosion causes the stress to shift from one part of the rock to another, forming regular high-pressure areas. As erosion continues, arches appear along the rock surface and the adjacent neighboring high-pressure areas connect to form an arcade," explains Alexander Safonov, an assistant professor at Skoltech.

The study showed that as the erosion front moves deeper into the rock, several rows of arcades are formed inside. A decrease in the rock's total weight due to erosion reduces the loads on individual arches, which can lead to partial erosion of the arcades and their evolution into colonnades.

The model describes sandstone arcades and pillars in the Czech Republic (Bohemian Paradise) and the United States (Arches National Park)) as well as arches and columns in coastal areas.

Conservation management around the margins of agriculture fail to protect butterfly species at greatest risk from the intensification of farming, a new study says.

The research, from the University of York, says the subsidised schemes are likely to help common, more mobile grassland species like the Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus) or the Meadow brown (Maniola jurtina) but not rarer species like the Duke of Burgundy (Hamearis lucina) or the Dingy skipper (Erynnis tages).

Agri-environment schemes financially reward farmers managing land in ways which aim to reduce the environmental impacts of agriculture. Common options include setting aside small areas of land out of production, including leaving grassland strips at the edges of agricultural fields.

The study examined whether these strips helped support insects including grassland butterfly populations. It used ecological models to look at whether the schemes improved butterfly survival locally and also if set aside land helped species expand their range and move across landscapes. This expansion is important so that species can move in response to climate change.

Katie Threadgill, PhD student from the Department of Biology said: "These kind of set aside schemes help mobile, common butterfly species move across landscapes but they do not help all species.

"The greatest benefits were seen in species which were either highly mobile or which live in high densities. High density species which could travel further were already successful expanders regardless of set-asides although expansion rates were still improved when set-asides were added. Overall, set-aside strips did increase rates of range expansion across landscapes by up to 100% for some species but they did not boost long term butterfly survival locally.

Prof Jane Hill, who co-supervised the project added: "Small-scale set-asides have the potential to improve connectivity, which will help some species move to cope with climate change, and connect up habitat patches for others."

The study concluded that set-asides are unlikely to benefit low dispersal, low density species which are probably at greatest risk from agricultural intensification.

Katie Threadgill added: "Our results suggest that small set-aside strips alone are not an appropriate solution for preventing extinctions in the long term, but can provide other benefits"

Firefighters face occupational hazards on a daily basis. Now, new research shows they face additional risk just by gearing up.

Fabric used for firefighter turnout gear tested positive for the presence of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), according to the study published in Environmental Science and Technology Letters, led by Graham Peaslee, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame. Peaslee embarked on a more extensive study, after initial tests on gear samples showed significantly high levels of fluorine.

"When we ran our initial tests, the fluorine content was so high, there was little question as to whether or not we'd find PFAS in a larger sample of gear," said Peaslee. "Our primary concern -- as is always the case when it comes to these particular chemicals -- became how much of it is coming off the gear and getting into the environment?"

Peaslee's team tested more than 30 samples of used and unused personal protective equipment (PPE) from six specialty textile manufacturers in the United States and found them to be treated extensively with PFAS or constructed with fluoropolymers, a type of PFAS used to make textiles oil and water resistant.

Firefighter's PPE or "turnout gear" is comprised of three layers -- a thermal layer, worn closest to the skin, covered by a moisture barrier designed for water resistance and the outer shell. Peaslee and his team found high concentrations of fluorine on the moisture barrier and outer shell. Some of these chemicals have the ability to migrate off treated surfaces and materials, meaning the PFAS in the moisture barrier and outer shell PPE could potentially contaminate the thermal layer and come in direct contact with skin.

"If they touch the gear, it gets on their hands, and if they go fight a fire and they put the gear on and take it off and then go eat and don't wash hands, it could transfer hand to mouth," said Peaslee. "And if you're sweating and you have sweat pores, could some of these chemicals come off on the thermal layer and get into the skin? The answer is probably." Peaslee's study is the first to identify this potential source of PFAS exposure in firefighting PPE and argues that more studies are needed.

Known as "forever chemicals" PFAS have been found in fast food wrappers and containers, nonstick cookware, child car seats and firefighting foams. The use of PFAS-based foam fire suppressants has been linked to the contamination of drinking water systems, leading the United States Department of Defense to switch to an environmentally safer alternative foam before 2023. In a previous study, co-authored by Peaslee, researchers found the chemicals accumulate in the body after entering the bloodstream, and PFAS have been linked to four of the top eight cancers which have been found more commonly in firefighters including testicular cancer, mesothelioma, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and prostate cancer.

The study also presented evidence of the potential hazard of these chemicals in PPE in two other ways. Dust samples taken from a PPE distribution facility in one fire district also tested positive for fluorine, consistent with the ability of these chemicals to shed off the gear onto other surfaces. The team also observed fluorine transfer from the outer shell onto gloved hands upon handling, proving that this could be an exposure source from PFAS to firefighters.

"Further work needs to be done to assess the extent of this risk to firefighters," said Peaslee, an affiliated member of the Eck Institute for Global Health and the Environmental Change Initiative. "But until this risk is estimated, operational steps can be taken to minimize occupational exposure to these PFAS while still using the PPE to keep the firefighters safe on the job." Peaslee suggests that the long-term solution would be to find a healthier alternative to PFAS which can provide equivalent water resistance to the gear.

This is just the latest study in a building collection of literature highlighting the danger and persistence of PFAS in contamination of the environment and threat to public health.

What happens when a molecule collides with a surface? Researchers at Swansea University have shown that the orientation of the molecule as it moves - whether it is spinning like a helicopter blade or rolling like a cartwheel - is important in determining what happens in the collision.

The interaction of molecules with surfaces lies at the heart of many research fields and applications: plant fertilizers and chemicals, industrial catalysts, atmospheric chemical reactions on ice and dust particles, and even - in space - the processes through which a star is born.

A key question in the field of surface science is understanding whether a molecule, when it collides with a surface, will scatter back to the gas phase, adsorb on the surface, or react and break down into fragments.

One molecular property which can change the outcome of a collision is the rotational orientation of the molecule. However, the current understanding of this relation is very limited, as it is usually impossible to control or measure the orientation of a rotating molecule.

This is where the Swansea team's research comes in. The team, led by Professor Gil Alexandrowicz of Swansea University chemistry department, has developed a new type of experiment which enabled them to assess two things:

-how the rotational orientation of the molecule, just before the collision, changes the scattering probabilities; and then

-how the collision in turn changes the orientation of the molecules ejected back into the gas phase.

The experiments performed by Yosef Alkoby, a PhD student in the group, used magnetic fields to control the rotational quantum states of hydrogen molecules before and after colliding with the surface of a salt crystal.

A quantum mechanical simulation, developed by Dr. Helen Chadwick, was used to extract the scattering matrix from the measurement. This is a detailed descriptor which reveals exactly how rotation orientation affects the collision and how the collision changes the way the molecules rotate.

Until now, scattering matrices could only be estimated from theoretical calculations. In their new paper, the Swansea team have demonstrated for the first time an experimental determination of a scattering matrix, opening up new opportunities for studying and modelling molecule-surface interactions.

Key findings were:

The molecule-surface interaction potential of hydrogen with Lithium Fluoride depends strongly on the rotational orientation of the hydrogen molecules.

The scattering matrix obtained from the experiments confirms that collisions of hydrogen with Lithium Fluoride can change the rotational orientation of the molecule and provides the information needed to use this simple salt surface to rotationally orient hydrogen molecules.

The scattering matrix obtained from the experiment provides an extremely stringent benchmark which will guide the development of accurate theoretical models.

Professor Gil Alexandrowicz of Swansea University College of Science, lead researcher, said:

"Our research reports a new type of molecule-surface collision experiment. We examined the orientation of a rotating ground-state molecule approaching a surface and how this changes the collision event.

Being able to model the outcome of a molecule-surface collision yields valuable insights for many fields of study. Yet even modelling the simplest molecule, H2, with a metal surface accurately still presents a significant challenge.

To develop accurate models, it is crucial to have results from fundamental surface-science experiments to benchmark theoretical descriptions against.

Our results provide a new and particularly sensitive bench mark for theory development, as the ability to calculate the collision and successfully reproduce the experimentally determined scattering matrix, requires a particularly accurate model for the molecule-surface interaction. "