Ilja Kogan, and Steffen Pacholak, and Martin Licht, and Jörg W. Schneider, and Christoph Brücker, and Sebastian Brandt

Recent pike-like predatory fishes attack prey animals by a quick strike out of rest or slow movement. This fast-start behaviour includes a preparatory, a propulsive and a final phase, and the latter is crucial for the success of the attack. To prevent prey from escape, predators tend to minimise the duration of the interaction and the disturbance caused to surrounding water in order to not be detected by the prey's lateral line sensory system. We compared the hydrodynamic properties of the earli...

Hagen M. Gegner, and Maren Ziegler, and Nils Rädecker, and Carol Buitrago-López, and Manuel Aranda, and Christian R. Voolstra

The endosymbiosis between dinoflagellate algae of the genus Symbiodinium and stony corals provides the foundation of coral reef ecosystems. Coral bleaching, the expulsion of endosymbionts from the coral host tissue as a consequence of heat or light stress, poses a threat to reef ecosystem functioning on a global scale. Hence, a better understanding of the factors contributing to heat stress susceptibility and tolerance is needed. In this regard, some of the most thermotolerant corals live in par...

Marcos Medeiros Cavalcanti Júnior, and Luiz U. Hepp, and Joseline Molozzi, and Dilma M. de Brito Melo Trovão

The input of leaf litter is an important energy source for the riparian vegetation of aquatic ecosystems, and the chemical composition of leaf litter is decisive for colonization by invertebrates in streams. Plant species of the semiarid regions present different morphophysiological characteristics to combat the effects of drought, including tough leaves that have less nutritional quality. However, although concern regarding the decomposition of organic matter in aquatic ecosystems in semiarid ...

Nyree Fea, and Stephen Hartley

Predation of indigenous birds by ship rats (Rattus rattus, [Muridae]) is an international conservation crisis and has been implicated in the decline of many endemic species. Effective management of threatened ecosystems relies on accurate assessments of invasive species impacts on native wildlife. To quantify the link between ship rat abundance and survival of small, endemic birds we investigated the prevalence of rat predation on nesting New Zealand Fantails (Rhipidura fuliginosa placabilis, [R...

Tonderai W. Shumba, and Indres Moodley

Background: Evaluation of Community-Based Rehabilitation (CBR) programmes in Namibia has been primarily quantitative, focusing mainly on outputs, including numbers of persons with disabilities served, referrals made and activities implemented. Little or no evidence is available on experiences and quality of life of persons with disabilities, despite the CBR programme being operational for more than 20 years. The 2011 World Report on Disability recommended the use of appropriate tools to fill the...

Yuya Yoshimitsu, and Jun Abe, and Shigeaki Harayama

Abstract Background Oxygen-evolving photosynthetic microorganisms, collectively termed as microalgae, are gaining attention as alternative fuel sources. The unicellular alga Coccomyxa sp. strain KJ that belongs to the class Trebouxiophyceae can grow rapidly in minimal mineral media and accumulate triacylglycerols at levels > 60% (w/w) of its dry weight under nitrogen depletion conditions. Thus, the strain can be a good candidate for biofuel production. Still, substantial improvements in lipid pr...

He-he Du, and Hai-Zhen Zhou, and Ping Tang, and Hui-qin Huang, and Min Liu, and Yong-hua Hu

Abstract Recently, bacterial small RNA (sRNA) has been shown to be involved as a key regulator in stress responses. sRNAs of Edwardsiella piscicida, an important aquatic pathogen, are not well characterized to date. In this study, using RNA-seq technology, we globally found and identified sRNA candidates expressed from E. piscicida grown in normal LB medium, acid pressure, iron deficiency stress, and oxidation pressure. A total of 148 sRNAs were found, including 19 previously annotated sRNAs and...

Lily S. R. Tao, and Karen K. Y. Lui, and Edward T. C. Lau, and Kevin K. Y. Ho, and Yanny K. Y. Mak, and Yvonne Sadovy de Mitcheson, and Kenneth M. Y. Leung

Abstract Intensive trawling activities in Hong Kong waters have seriously depleted fishery resources and damaged marine benthic habitats over the last four decades. To minimize further destruction and rehabilitate fishery resources, the Hong Kong Government implemented a permanent territory-wide trawling closure on 31 December 2012. Such a trawl ban creates a unique opportunity to investigate recoveries in ecosystem structure and function following a major shift in disturbance regime by removing...

Fumihiro Asano, and Takashi Ishida, and Naofumi Shinagawa, and Noriaki Sukoh, and Masaki Anzai, and Kenya Kanazawa, and Akifumi Tsuzuku, and Satoshi Morita

Abstract Background Transbronchial biopsy for peripheral pulmonary lesions is generally performed under X-ray fluoroscopy. Virtual bronchoscopic navigation (VBN) is a method in which virtual images of the bronchial route to the lesion are produced based on CT images obtained before VBN, and the bronchoscope is guided using these virtual images, improving the diagnostic yield of peripheral pulmonary lesions. VBN has the possibility of eliminating the need for X-ray fluoroscopy in the bronchoscopi...

Mario H. Vargas, and Rosangela Del-Razo-Rodríguez, and Amando López-García, and José Luis Lezana-Fernández, and Jaime Chávez, and María E. Y. Furuya, and Juan Carlos Marín-Santana

Abstract Background Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) have airway inflammation that contributes to symptoms and to pulmonary function derangement. Current drugs used to diminish airway inflammation improve the clinical and spirometric status of patients with CF, but their use is limited due to their undesired side effects, for example, glucose intolerance, growth retardation, and cataracts with corticosteroids, gastrointestinal toxicity with ibuprofen, and macrolide resistance with azythromycin...

Rodimiro Ramos-Reyes, and Rufo Sánchez-Hernández, and Lilia María Gama-Campillo

El objetivo fue identicar la dinámica del cambio de uso de suelo del 2000 al 2010 en el municipio de Comalcalco, Tabasco, México. Se observa disminución del pastizal en 4.06 %, al disminuir de 36 595 a 33 448 ha, para uso agrícola y urbano. El incremento en el uso agrícola, fue alentado por programas gubernamentales, mientras que el uso urbano responde al incremento del 23.33 % de la población en los 10 años de estudio. Por causas antrópicas, se observó la pérdida de vegetación hidróla en ...

Jiuping Xu, and Zhe Zhang, and Vijay S. Mookerjee

The aim of this paper is to deal with the optimal navigation coordinated scheduling (NCS) problem in ship transportation of the Three Gorges Project in China, i.e. the Three Gorges Dam and the Gezhouba Dam. The NCS includes operational scheduling for two five-step locks in Three Gorges Dam and three single-step locks in Gezhouba Dam. A birandom multiple objective decision-making model is first proposed for the NCS problem to cope with hybrid uncertain environment where twofold randomness exists...

Sergei Chernyi

Currently, there is an increased interest in the tools and methods of active control of generation and consumption of the inactive energy flows. Particularly, the task is relevant for autonomous electric power systems operating on a non-linear load. At the same time, the inactive energy flows is required to be controlled according to the specified law in order to impart the desired properties to autonomous systems. In general, with a high degree of automation on board the ships of the world flee...

Gerashchenko Alena Igorevna, and Gerashchenko Igor Germanovich

The article deals with topical problems of logical training of lawyers related to the modernization of higher education in Russia. It shows the negative consequences of eliminating the course of logic from basic training in the field of law. The authors analyse different types of logic, both in the historical aspect and in the context of the fundamental education of lawyers. The authors substantiate the idea that one should not limit oneself to teaching mathematical logic alone, since this metho...

Zang Yinyin, and Hunt Nigel, and Cox Tom

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a common psychological reaction after large-scale natural disasters. Given the number of people involved and shortage of resources in any major disaster, brief, pragmatic and easily trainable interventions are needed. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) as a short-term treatment for PTSD using Chinese earthquake survivors.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A randomized waiting-list...

Bairagi Soumi, and Babu Subash S, and Mohan Viswanathan, and Nathan Abel A, and Dixit Madhulika

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Haematopoietic stem cells undergo mobilization from bone marrow to blood in response to physiological stimuli such as ischemia and tissue injury. The aim of study was to determine the kinetics of circulating CD34⁺and CD133⁺CD34⁺progenitor cells in response to 75 g glucose load in subjects with normal and impaired glucose metabolism.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Asian Indian male subjects (n = 50) with no prior history of glucose im...

Casini Silvia, and Marsili Letizia, and Lazzeri Elisa, and Panti Cristina, and Spinsanti Giacomo, and Frati Francesco, and Fossi Cristina

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Odontocete cetaceans occupy the top position of the marine food-web and are particularly sensitive to the bioaccumulation of lipophilic contaminants. The effects of environmental pollution on these species are highly debated and various ecotoxicological studies have addressed the impact of xenobiotic compounds on marine mammals, raising conservational concerns. Despite its sensitivity, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) has never been used to quantify gene ...

Kalkat Maninder S, and Loubani Mahmoud, and Nanjaiah Prakash, and Naidu Babu V, and Rathinam Sridhar, and Rajesh Pala B

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Both tissue sealants and buttressing have been advocated to reduce alveolar air leaks from staple lines following Lung Volume Reduction Surgery (LVRS). However, the long term detrimental effects of buttressing material are increasingly apparent. We performed a pilot prospective randomised self controlled trial in patients undergoing LVRS comparing BioGlue and Peri-strips as adjuncts in preventing alveolar air-leaks.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A pilot prospective s...

Wang Wenqin, and Wu Yongrui, and Yan Yiheng, and Ermakova Marina, and Kerstetter Randall, and Messing Joachim

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Members of the aquatic monocot family <it>Lemnaceae </it>(commonly called duckweeds) represent the smallest and fastest growing flowering plants. Their highly reduced morphology and infrequent flowering result in a dearth of characters for distinguishing between the nearly 38 species that exhibit these tiny, closely-related and often morphologically similar features within the same family of plants.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We developed a simple and rapid DNA-ba...

Domenico Meloni, and Pierluigi Piras, and Rina Mazzette

Mislabelling and species substitution are major concerns for fishery products marketed in the EU. The present survey aimed to investigate the correct enforcement of the Community and National rules on the labelling and marketing of fishery products retailed in Sardinia (Italy) between 2009 and 2014. A total of 3000 labels for fresh unpacked fishery products have been considered. A total of 900 labels (30%) presented non-compliance concerning the wrong trade name, the wrong or missing information...

L. T. Bach

Marine organisms precipitate 0.5–2.0 Gt of carbon as calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) every year with a profound impact on global biogeochemical element cycles. Biotic calcification relies on calcium ions (Ca²⁺) and usually on bicarbonate ions (HCO₃^&minus;) as CaCO₃ substrates and can be inhibited by high proton (H⁺) concentrations. The seawater concentration of carbonate ions (CO₃^2&minus;) and the CO₃<su...

S. Dutkiewicz, and A. E. Hickman, and O. Jahn, and W. W. Gregg, and C. B. Mouw, and M. J. Follows

We present a numerical model of the ocean that couples a three-stream radiative transfer component with a marine biogeochemical–ecosystem component in a dynamic three-dimensional physical framework. The radiative transfer component resolves the penetration of spectral irradiance as it is absorbed and scattered within the water column. We explicitly include the effect of several optically important water constituents (different phytoplankton functional types; detrital particles; and coloured dis...

A. Najafi-Jilani, and A. Nik-Khah

Monitoring of water surfaces through permanent measurement of hydrodynamic and meteorological data is one of the main requirements in safe and sustainable water management. The Caspian Sea, the major surface water body in Iran, significantly affects more than 600 km of urban and industrial coastline. In the present work, an integrated marine monitoring network for the entire southern coastline of the Caspian Sea was developed. The main design concerns centered on the network measuring components...

Javed eKhan, and Caroline eTrembath, and Steve ePether, and Michael eBruce, and Seumas eWalker, and Neill Andrew Herbert

Induced-swimming can improve the growth and feed conversion efficiency of finfish aquaculture species, such as salmonids and Seriola sp., but some species, such as Atlantic cod, show no or a negative productivity response to exercise. As a possible explanation for these species-specific differences, a recent hypothesis proposed that the applicability of exercise training, as well as the exercise regime for optimal growth gain (ER opt growth), was dependent upon the size of available aerobic meta...

J. Huang, and L. Jaeglé

Sea salt aerosols (SSA) are generated via air bubbles bursting at the ocean surface as well as by wind mobilization of saline snow and frost flowers over sea-ice-covered areas. The relative magnitude of these sources remains poorly constrained over polar regions, affecting our ability to predict their impact on halogen chemistry, cloud formation, and climate. We implement a blowing snow and a frost flower emission scheme in the GEOS-Chem global chemical transport model, which we validate against...

Juan-Fang Liu, and De-Chao Jiao, and Jian-Zhuang Ren, and Wen-Guang Zhang, and Xin-Wei Han

Objectives: To assess the clinical role of flat-panel cone beam CT (CBCT) in performing percutaneous needle biopsy (PNB) of bone lesions. Flat-panel cone beam CT systems have been used as a guidance tool for performing percutaneous biopsy. Real-time fluoroscopy and virtual navigation systems help simplify needle path planning and shorten procedure times. Methods: From March 2012 to March 2016, 80 patients with 80 bone lesions were retrospectively enrolled in the study in Zhengzhou city of Chi...

Gurbuz Gokhan, and Shuanggen Jin

Global Positioning System (GPS) has been widely used to estimate the total zenith tropospheric delay (ZTD) and precipitable water vapour (PWV) for weather prediction and atmospheric research as a continuous and all-weather technique. However, estimations of ZTD and PWV are subject to effects of geophysical models with large uncertainties, particularly imprecise ocean tide models of inland seas in Turkey. In this paper, GPS data from Jan. 1, 2010 to Dec. 31, 2011 are processed using GAMIT/GLOBK a...

Abdul-Razak M. Mohamed, and Saddek A. Hussein, and Laith F. Lazem

Objective: To study spatial and temporal variability of fish assemblage in the Shatt Al-Arab River. Methods: This study was conducted from December 2011 to November 2012. Water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and transparency were measured from three sites in the river. Several fishing methods were adopted to collect fish including gill nets, cast net, electro-fishing and hook and lines. Associations between the distribution of fish species and the environmental variables were quan...

Ravi Raja, and Arularasan Sabapathi, and Vishwanathan Sankar

Objective: To evaluate the antimicrobial activity of different solvent extracts of the species Thais bufo against the Streptococcus pyogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. Methods: Different types of solvents were used such as acetone, benzene, butanol, chloroform, ethanol, ethyl acetate, hexane, methanol, toluene and distilled water for extraction, based on the polarity basis for the purpose of minimizing the process and error in identification and characterization of the active compound. Res...

R. S. Cordeiro, and J. E. L. Barbosa, and G. Q. Lima Filho, and L. G. Barbosa

Abstract The hydrological periods drive the structure and organization of aquatic communities in semiarid regions. We hypothesize that a decrease of the precipitation during the dry period will favor the development of the periphytic algal community, leading to higher richness and density in this period. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the changes in the periphytic algal community structure in three shallow and eutrophic ecosystems of the Brazilian semiarid. The sampling was performed b...

Rosa Maria Coco-Martín, and Rubén Cuadrado-Asensio, and César Vega-Colado, and Ricardo Vergaz, and José M. Sánchez-Pena, and Ana Viñuales, and Sergi Peris, and Pau Artús, and M. Begoña Coco-Martín

Purpose: To evaluate the potential clinical usability of a new prototype of ophthalmic blue light filters developed by using electrochromic technology in pseudophakic patients complaining of glare. Methods: A prototype of electrochromic device was developed, with a specific frame that enclosed an electronic driver that allowed personalizing its function for each patient. A prospective, observational case series study was performed to test it. Five patients who had undergone cataract surgery with...

F. Hu, and K. Bolding, and J. Bruggeman, and E. Jeppesen, and M. R. Flindt, and L. van Gerven, and J. H. Janse, and A. B. G. Janssen, and J. J. Kuiper, and W. M. Mooij, and D. Trolle

This study presents FABM-PCLake, a redesigned structure of the PCLake aquatic ecosystem model, which we implemented in the Framework for Aquatic Biogeochemical Models (FABM). In contrast to the original model, which was designed for temperate, fully mixed freshwater lakes, the new FABM-PCLake represents an integrated aquatic ecosystem model that can be linked with different hydrodynamic models and allows simulations of hydrodynamic and biogeochemical processes for zero-dimensional, one-dimension...

Josefina Peters-Didier, and Mary A. Sewell

Abstract Background For echinoderms with feeding larvae, metamorphic and post-settlement success may be highly dependent on larval nutrition and the accumulation of energetic lipids from the diet. In contrast to the sea urchins, starfish and brittle stars within the Phylum Echinodermata, sea cucumber metamorphosis does not involve formation of a juvenile rudiment, but instead there is a rearrangement of the entire larval body. Successful metamorphosis in sea cucumbers is often associated with th...

Esmeralda Chamorro Legarda, and Suhellen Santos Barcelos, and Joselle Cursino Redig, and Norha Constanza Bolívar Ramírez, and Ariane Martins Guimarães, and Carlos Manoel do Espírito Santo, and Walter Quadros Seiffert, and Felipe do Nascimento Vieira

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different stocking densities and the presence/absence of two artificial substrates on water quality and production rates of marine shrimp in a biofloc shrimp nursery culture. Two experiments were performed: different stocking densities with mosquito netting substrate and the presence/absence of polyester-type substrate. The first experiment lasted 38 days, and shrimp at an initial weight of 0.013±0.010 g were stocked in 24 tanks....

Isadora Altero Longo, and Ariane Diane Morais Nunes, and Clayton Henrique Rocha, and Fabiana Mara Branco, and Renata Rodrigues Moreira, and Ivone Ferreira Neves-Lobo, and Raquel Aparecida Casarotto, and Alessandra Giannella Samelli

ABSTRACT Objective: to verify the effect of a vestibular rehabilitation program on workers with dizziness from the Division of Nutrition and Dietetics at a University Hospital. Methods: a total of 13 employees between 42 and 65 years of age participated, of whom, 1 was male, and 12, females. They were evaluated before and after the vestibular rehabilitation program using the Dizziness Handicap Inventory, Work Ability Index and Visual Analog Scale. The program was conducted in groups at the wor...

Andrea Gomes Santana de Melo, and José Jenivaldo de Melo Irmão, and Verónica de Lourdes Sierpe Jeraldo, and Cláudia Moura Melo

Abstract Objective: To analyze the epidemiological and clinical aspects involved in the transmission and manifestation of schistosomiasis in a community of fishermen from the endemic area of Alagoas. Methods: Epidemiological, transversal, prospective, descriptive, quantitative study. The coproparasitological survey included 275 family units of fish workers and the epidemiological and clinical ones, those with a positive diagnosis for S. mansoni. Results: The prevalence of schistosomiasis was ...

Yangxin Tang

Abstract We shall apply the phase-field method to investigate the dynamics of sea ice growth. The model consists of two parabolic equations. The existence and uniqueness of weak solutions to an initial-boundary value problem of this model is proved. Then the regularity, large-time behavior of solutions are studied, also the existence of global attractor is proved. The main technique in this article is energy method. Our existence proof is only valid in one space dimension.

Lu Dong, and Michael J. McPhaden

Abstract In early 2014, strong westerly wind bursts (WWBs) and high heat content in the equatorial Pacific favored development of a major El Niño. However, significant coupling between the Pacific Ocean and atmosphere failed to take hold during boreal summer of 2014 such that only borderline El Niño conditions were evident by the end of the year. Observational analysis suggests that warm sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the Indian Ocean in 2014 weakened westerly wind anomalies in the Pacific a...

A. Massé, and I. Domart-Coulon, and S. Golubic, and D. Duché, and A. Tribollet

Abstract Ostreobium sp. (Bryopsidales, Ulvophyceae) is a major microboring alga involved in tropical reef dissolution, with a proposed symbiotic lifestyle in living corals. However, its diversity and colonization dynamics in host’s early life stages remained unknown. Here, we mapped microborer distribution and abundance in skeletons of the branching coral Pocillopora damicornis from the onset of calcification in primary polyps (7 days) to budding juvenile colonies (1 and 3 months) growing on car...

Jingjing Lu, and Feng Wang, and Pengfei Chai, and Dongshuo Wang, and Lu Li, and Xudong Zhou

Abstract Purpose Although adolescents’ mental health problems and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) have been a serious public health concern worldwide, descriptions of risk factors for SITBs often fail to take migration into account. There are roughly 35.8 million migrant children in China who, with their parents, moved from original rural residence to urban areas. Little is known about migrant children’s mental health status and levels of SITBs. This study aims to explore the menta...

M. Ploegsma

The Suomusjärvi shear zone in the West Uusimaa area in the Proterozoic Svecofennides of SW Finland belongs to a group of late, post-peak metamorphic structures comprising vertical shear zones and folds with vertical fold axes. Field and microscopical evidence suggest that these structures can be correlated with a shear zone cutting the Bodom granite with a known U-Pb zircon age of 1641 ± 13 Ma. This paper presents the results of a pilot Rb-Sr whole-rock and biotite dating of the Suomusjärvi shea...

José Ángel Moreno-Cabezuelo, and Antonio López-Lozano, and Jesús Díez, and José Manuel García-Fernández

Background Our team discovered that Prochlorococcus can take up glucose, in a process that changes the transcriptional pattern of several genes involved in glucose metabolization. We have also shown that glcH encodes a very high affinity glucose transporter, and that glucose is taken up by natural Prochlorococcus populations. We demonstrated that the kinetic parameters of glucose uptake show significant diversity in different Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus strains. Here, we tested whether the...

Martin Rempt, and Florian Weinberger, and Katharina Grosser, and Georg Pohnert

Chemical defense of the invasive red alga Gracilaria vermiculophylla has been studied and compared to that of the noninvasive but related Gracilaria chilensis. Both species rely on a wound-activated chemical defense that makes them less attractive to the herbivorous sea snail Echinolittorina peruviana. The chemical stress response of both species was monitored by LC–ESIMS-based metabolic profiling and revealed commonalities and differences. Both algae rely on a rapid lipoxygenase mediated transf...

Leila Hayashi, and Renata P. Reis

Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta, Gigartinales) is a red algae widely cultivated as the main source of raw material for the carrageenan industry. This hydrocolloid is normally used in the food industry as a gelling and stabilizing agent. The facility of its commercial farming based on vegetative propagation promoted the success of the aquaculture of this macroalgae that consequently stimulated studies focusing on new potential uses of this resource. This work presents a brief review of the stud...

Gan Wang, and Xiaoyan Wang, and Lixiang Huang

In tissue engineering, scaffolding plays an important role in accommodating and stimulating new tissue growth. Chitosan and alginate are two widely used natural polymers in tissue engineering. Here, we prepared the chitosan-alginate (Chi-Alg) hydrogel from naturally derived chitosan and alginate polymers. The Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction results demonstrated that a chitosan-alginate hydrogel was constructed due to the strong ionic interaction between the positi...

Alessandro Cau, and Lorenzo Bramanti, and Rita Cannas, and Davide Moccia, and Bachisio Mario Padedda, and Cristina Porcu, and Flavio Sacco, and Maria Cristina Follesa

Over the last decades, Global Climate Change (GCC) caused increase in seawater temperature, which have shown to be detrimental for Mediterranean red coral populations (Corallium rubrum). Recent researches described how responses to temperature increase can differ depending on location and previous stress history; however, investigations throughout a wide bathymetric range on the thermo-tolerance of specimens sharing the same thermally stable environment are still lacking. In order to test if C....

Diana Cabrera, and Frances M. Wolber, and Keren Dittmer, and Chris Rogers, and Anne Ridler, and Danielle Aberdein, and Tim Parkinson, and Paul Chambers, and Karl Fraser, and Nicole C. Roy, and Marlena Kruger

The aim of this study was to validate the combination of ovariectomy and glucocorticoid treatment in sheep as a large animal model for osteoporosis by measuring the concentration of specific biomarkers in the blood of the sheep and measuring bone loss over five months. Aged Merino ewes were randomly allocated into four groups: control, ovariectomy (OVX), and two OVX groups receiving glucocorticoids—one group once-monthly for five months (OVXG), and the other for two months followed by no treatme...

Mohammad Rashidul Haque1, and Razia Sultana2, and Md. Habibur Rahman1, and Syful Islam2, and Ahmed Khairul Hasan3

Rice cultivation in saline prone area is very difficult. Some recently developed salt tolerant rice varieties are introduced in the coastal zone of Bangladesh. But their impact on income analysis is not done yet. The present study was designed to assess the adoption and impact on income of salt tolerant rice varieties viz., Binadhan-8 and Binadhan-10 cultivation in coastal areas of Bangladesh. In total 300 farmers from six salt tolerant rice growing areas, namely Patuakhali, Cox’s Bazar, Chittag...

Shengquan Tang, and Hans von Storch, and Xueen Chen, and Meng Zhang

Summary: The internally generated variability in the climate system, which is unrelated to any external factors, can be conceptualized as “noise”. This noise is a constitutive element of high-dimensional nonlinear models of such systems. In a three-layer nested simulation, which is forced by climatological (periodic) atmospheric forcing and includes an (almost) global model, a West-Pacific model, and South China Sea (SCS) model, we demonstrate that such “noise” builds also ocean models. They gen...

Sabina Solovjova, and Aurelija Samuilovienė, and Greta Srėbalienė, and Dan Minchin, and Sergej Olenin

Summary: The gulf wedge clam, common rangia Rangia cuneata, with a native origin in the Gulf of Mexico has spread to north European brackish and freshwaters. This semitropical species is able to survive in conditions of low winter temperatures in boreal environment of the Baltic Sea. Its expansion within lagoons and sheltered bays in the southern and eastern parts of the Baltic Sea appears to be with natural spread and its discontinuous distribution is likely to have been with shipping, either w...