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Calear AL, Macleod E, Hoye AM, McCallum S, Morse A, Farrer LM, Batterham PJ. Pragmatic controlled trial of a school-based emotion literacy program for 8- to 10-year-old children: study protocol. BMC Psychiatry 2024; 24:275. [PMID: 38609882 PMCID: PMC11010293 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-024-05628-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mental disorders are common in childhood, but many young people do not receive adequate professional support. Help-seeking interventions may bridge this treatment gap, however, there is limited research on interventions for primary-school children. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of an emotion literacy program at increasing literacy, reducing stigma, and promoting help-seeking in children aged 8-10 years. METHODS AND ANALYSIS A two-arm pragmatic cluster-controlled trial will compare Thriving Minds, an emotion literacy program for middle primary school children, to a wait-list control condition. Children aged 8-10 years will be recruited from approximately 12 schools (6 intervention schools/6 wait-list control) to participate in Thriving Minds via direct invitation by the program delivery service. Allocation to the intervention condition will be pragmatically, by school. Children will receive the intervention over two 50-minute sessions, across two weeks. Using story books and interactive discussion, the program aims to develop children's knowledge of their own and other's emotional experiences and emotion regulation strategies (self-care and help-seeking). The primary outcome is help-seeking intentions. Secondary outcomes include help-seeking knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours, emotion knowledge and attitudes, and stigma. Children will complete surveys at pre-intervention, post-intervention (one week after the program) and 12-week follow-up. Additional satisfaction data will be collected from teachers in intervention schools via surveys (post-intervention and 3-month follow-up) and semi-structured interviews (after follow-up), and selected children via focus groups (12-week follow-up). Analyses will compare changes in help-seeking intentions relative to the waitlist control condition using mixed-model repeated-measures analyses to account for clustering within schools. DISCUSSION With demonstrated effectiveness, this universal emotion literacy program for promoting help-seeking for mental health could be more widely delivered in Australian primary schools, providing a valuable new resource, contributing to the mental health of young people by improving help-seeking for early mental health difficulties. TRIAL REGISTRATION Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12623000910606 Registered on 24 August 2023.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison L Calear
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
| | - Emily Macleod
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Ashley M Hoye
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Sonia McCallum
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Alyssa Morse
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Louise M Farrer
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - Philip J Batterham
- Centre for Mental Health Research, College of Health and Medicine, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
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2
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Khan GA, Dutta A, van de Meene A, Frandsen KEH, Ogden M, Whelan J, Persson S. Phosphate starvation regulates cellulose synthesis to modify root growth. Plant Physiol 2024; 194:1204-1217. [PMID: 37823515 PMCID: PMC10828208 DOI: 10.1093/plphys/kiad543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
In the model plant Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), the absence of the essential macro-nutrient phosphate reduces primary root growth through decreased cell division and elongation, requiring alterations to the polysaccharide-rich cell wall surrounding the cells. Despite its importance, the regulation of cell wall synthesis in response to low phosphate levels is not well understood. In this study, we show that plants increase cellulose synthesis in roots under limiting phosphate conditions, which leads to changes in the thickness and structure of the cell wall. These changes contribute to the reduced growth of primary roots in low-phosphate conditions. Furthermore, we found that the cellulose synthase complex (CSC) activity at the plasma membrane increases during phosphate deficiency. Moreover, we show that this increase in the activity of the CSC is likely due to alterations in the phosphorylation status of cellulose synthases in low-phosphate conditions. Specifically, phosphorylation of CELLULOSE SYNTHASE 1 (CESA1) at the S688 site decreases in low-phosphate conditions. Phosphomimic versions of CESA1 with an S688E mutation showed significantly reduced cellulose induction and primary root length changes in low-phosphate conditions. Protein structure modeling suggests that the phosphorylation status of S688 in CESA1 could play a role in stabilizing and activating the CSC. This mechanistic understanding of root growth regulation under limiting phosphate conditions provides potential strategies for changing root responses to soil phosphate content.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ghazanfar Abbas Khan
- Department of Animal, Plant and Soil Sciences, School of Agriculture, Biomedicine and Environment, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | - Arka Dutta
- Department of Animal, Plant and Soil Sciences, School of Agriculture, Biomedicine and Environment, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
| | | | - Kristian E H Frandsen
- Copenhagen Plant Science Center, Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C 1871, Denmark
| | - Michael Ogden
- Copenhagen Plant Science Center, Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C 1871, Denmark
| | - James Whelan
- Department of Animal, Plant and Soil Sciences, School of Agriculture, Biomedicine and Environment, La Trobe University, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
- College of Life Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Staffan Persson
- School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia
- Copenhagen Plant Science Center, Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C 1871, Denmark
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 20040, China
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3
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Zhang J, Liu L, Wei X, Zhao C, Li S, Li J, Le TD. Pan-cancer characterization of ncRNA synergistic competition uncovers potential carcinogenic biomarkers. PLoS Comput Biol 2023; 19:e1011308. [PMID: 37812646 PMCID: PMC10586676 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) act as important modulators of gene expression and they have been confirmed to play critical roles in the physiology and development of malignant tumors. Understanding the synergism of multiple ncRNAs in competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulation can provide important insights into the mechanisms of malignant tumors caused by ncRNA regulation. In this work, we present a framework, SCOM, for identifying ncRNA synergistic competition. We systematically construct the landscape of ncRNA synergistic competition across 31 malignant tumors, and reveal that malignant tumors tend to share hub ncRNAs rather than the ncRNA interactions involved in the synergistic competition. In addition, the synergistic competition ncRNAs (i.e. ncRNAs involved in the synergistic competition) are likely to be involved in drug resistance, contribute to distinguishing molecular subtypes of malignant tumors, and participate in immune regulation. Furthermore, SCOM can help to infer ncRNA synergistic competition across malignant tumors and uncover potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers of malignant tumors. Altogether, the SCOM framework (https://github.com/zhangjunpeng411/SCOM/) and the resulting web-based database SCOMdb (https://comblab.cn/SCOMdb/) serve as a useful resource for exploring ncRNA regulation and to accelerate the identification of carcinogenic biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junpeng Zhang
- School of Engineering, Dali University, Dali, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Lin Liu
- UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, South Australia, Australia
| | - Xuemei Wei
- School of Engineering, Dali University, Dali, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Chunwen Zhao
- School of Engineering, Dali University, Dali, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Sijing Li
- School of Engineering, Dali University, Dali, Yunnan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jiuyong Li
- UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, South Australia, Australia
| | - Thuc Duy Le
- UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, South Australia, Australia
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4
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Towler A, Dunn JD, Castro Martínez S, Moreton R, Eklöf F, Ruifrok A, Kemp RI, White D. Diverse types of expertise in facial recognition. Sci Rep 2023; 13:11396. [PMID: 37452069 PMCID: PMC10349110 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-28632-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Facial recognition errors can jeopardize national security, criminal justice, public safety and civil rights. Here, we compare the most accurate humans and facial recognition technology in a detailed lab-based evaluation and international proficiency test for forensic scientists involving 27 forensic departments from 14 countries. We find striking cognitive and perceptual diversity between naturally skilled super-recognizers, trained forensic examiners and deep neural networks, despite them achieving equivalent accuracy. Clear differences emerged in super-recognizers' and forensic examiners' perceptual processing, errors, and response patterns: super-recognizers were fast, biased to respond 'same person' and misidentified people with extreme confidence, whereas forensic examiners were slow, unbiased and strategically avoided misidentification errors. Further, these human experts and deep neural networks disagreed on the similarity of faces, pointing to differences in their representations of faces. Our findings therefore reveal multiple types of facial recognition expertise, with each type lending itself to particular facial recognition roles in operational settings. Finally, we show that harnessing the diversity between individual experts provides a robust method of maximizing facial recognition accuracy. This can be achieved either via collaboration between experts in forensic laboratories, or most promisingly, by statistical fusion of match scores provided by different types of expert.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Towler
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia.
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072, Australia.
| | - James D Dunn
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia
| | - Sergio Castro Martínez
- Sección Técnicas Identificativas, Comisaría General de Policía Científica, 28039, Madrid, Spain
| | - Reuben Moreton
- School of Psychology, The Open University, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK
| | - Fredrick Eklöf
- Forensic Imaging Biometrics, Information Technology Section, National Forensic Centre, Swedish Police Authority, 581 94, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Arnout Ruifrok
- Forensic Biometrics, Netherlands Forensic Institute, 2497 GB, The Hague, The Netherlands
| | - Richard I Kemp
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia
| | - David White
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 2052, Australia
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5
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Stieb SM, Cortesi F, de Queiroz LJ, Carleton KL, Seehausen O, Marshall NJ. Long-wavelength-sensitive (lws) opsin gene expression, foraging and visual communication in coral reef fishes. Mol Ecol 2023; 32:1656-1672. [PMID: 36560895 PMCID: PMC10065935 DOI: 10.1111/mec.16831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2022] [Revised: 11/25/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Coral reef fishes are diverse in ecology and behaviour and show remarkable colour variability. Investigating the visual pigment gene (opsin) expression in these fishes makes it possible to associate their visual genotype and phenotype (spectral sensitivities) to visual tasks, such as feeding strategy or conspecific detection. By studying all major damselfish clades (Pomacentridae) and representatives from five other coral reef fish families, we show that the long-wavelength-sensitive (lws) opsin is highly expressed in algivorous and less or not expressed in zooplanktivorous species. Lws is also upregulated in species with orange/red colours (reflectance >520 nm) and expression is highest in orange/red-coloured algivores. Visual models from the perspective of a typical damselfish indicate that sensitivity to longer wavelengths does enhance the ability to detect the red to far-red component of algae and orange/red-coloured conspecifics, possibly enabling social signalling. Character state reconstructions indicate that in the early evolutionary history of damselfishes, there was no lws expression and no orange/red coloration. Omnivory was most often the dominant state. Although herbivory was sometimes dominant, zooplanktivory was never dominant. Sensitivity to long wavelength (increased lws expression) only emerged in association with algivory but never with zooplanktivory. Higher lws expression is also exploited by social signalling in orange/red, which emerged after the transition to algivory. Although the relative timing of traits may deviate by different reconstructions and alternative explanations are possible, our results are consistent with sensory bias whereby social signals evolve as a correlated response to natural selection on sensory system properties in other contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara M. Stieb
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry (CEEB), EAWAG Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Switzerland
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Fabio Cortesi
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Luiz Jardim de Queiroz
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry (CEEB), EAWAG Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Switzerland
| | - Karen L. Carleton
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Ole Seehausen
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Biogeochemistry (CEEB), EAWAG Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Kastanienbaum, Switzerland
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Switzerland
| | - N. Justin Marshall
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
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6
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Zhao YC, Zhang Y, Jiang F, Wu C, Wan B, Syeda R, Li Q, Shen B, Ju LA. A Novel Computational Biomechanics Framework to Model Vascular Mechanopropagation in Deep Bone Marrow. Adv Healthc Mater 2023; 12:e2201830. [PMID: 36521080 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202201830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Revised: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The mechanical stimuli generated by body exercise can be transmitted from cortical bone into the deep bone marrow (mechanopropagation). Excitingly, a mechanosensitive perivascular stem cell niche is recently identified within the bone marrow for osteogenesis and lymphopoiesis. Although it is long known that they are maintained by exercise-induced mechanical stimulation, the mechanopropagation from compact bone to deep bone marrow vasculature remains elusive of this fundamental mechanobiology field. No experimental system is available yet to directly understand such exercise-induced mechanopropagation at the bone-vessel interface. To this end, taking advantage of the revolutionary in vivo 3D deep bone imaging, an integrated computational biomechanics framework to quantitatively evaluate the mechanopropagation capabilities for bone marrow arterioles, arteries, and sinusoids is devised. As a highlight, the 3D geometries of blood vessels are smoothly reconstructed in the presence of vessel wall thickness and intravascular pulse pressure. By implementing the 5-parameter Mooney-Rivlin model that simulates the hyperelastic vessel properties, finite element analysis to thoroughly investigate the mechanical effects of exercise-induced intravascular vibratory stretching on bone marrow vasculature is performed. In addition, the blood pressure and cortical bone bending effects on vascular mechanoproperties are examined. For the first time, movement-induced mechanopropagation from the hard cortical bone to the soft vasculature in the bone marrow is numerically simulated. It is concluded that arterioles and arteries are much more efficient in propagating mechanical force than sinusoids due to their stiffness. In the future, this in-silico approach can be combined with other clinical imaging modalities for subject/patient-specific vascular reconstruction and biomechanical analysis, providing large-scale phenotypic data for personalized mechanobiology discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yunduo Charles Zhao
- School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
- The University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
| | - Yingqi Zhang
- School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
- The University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
| | - Fengtao Jiang
- School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
- The University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
| | - Chi Wu
- School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
| | - Boyang Wan
- School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
| | - Ruhma Syeda
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 75235, TX, Dallas, USA
| | - Qing Li
- School of Aerospace, Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
| | - Bo Shen
- National Institute of Biological Science, Zhongguancun Life Science Park, 102206, Beijing, China
- Tsinghua Institute of Multidisciplinary Biomedical Research, Tsinghua University, 102206, Beijing, China
| | - Lining Arnold Ju
- School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Sydney, 2008, New South Wales, Darlington, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
- The University of Sydney Nano Institute (Sydney Nano), The University of Sydney, 2006, New South Wales, Camperdown, Australia
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7
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Russell TW, Golding N, Hellewell J, Abbott S, Wright L, Pearson CAB, van Zandvoort K, Jarvis CI, Gibbs H, Liu Y, Eggo RM, Edmunds WJ, Kucharski AJ. Reconstructing the early global dynamics of under-ascertained COVID-19 cases and infections. BMC Med 2020; 18:332. [PMID: 33087179 PMCID: PMC7577796 DOI: 10.1186/s12916-020-01790-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Asymptomatic or subclinical SARS-CoV-2 infections are often unreported, which means that confirmed case counts may not accurately reflect underlying epidemic dynamics. Understanding the level of ascertainment (the ratio of confirmed symptomatic cases to the true number of symptomatic individuals) and undetected epidemic progression is crucial to informing COVID-19 response planning, including the introduction and relaxation of control measures. Estimating case ascertainment over time allows for accurate estimates of specific outcomes such as seroprevalence, which is essential for planning control measures. METHODS Using reported data on COVID-19 cases and fatalities globally, we estimated the proportion of symptomatic cases (i.e. any person with any of fever ≥ 37.5 °C, cough, shortness of breath, sudden onset of anosmia, ageusia or dysgeusia illness) that were reported in 210 countries and territories, given those countries had experienced more than ten deaths. We used published estimates of the baseline case fatality ratio (CFR), which was adjusted for delays and under-ascertainment, then calculated the ratio of this baseline CFR to an estimated local delay-adjusted CFR to estimate the level of under-ascertainment in a particular location. We then fit a Bayesian Gaussian process model to estimate the temporal pattern of under-ascertainment. RESULTS Based on reported cases and deaths, we estimated that, during March 2020, the median percentage of symptomatic cases detected across the 84 countries which experienced more than ten deaths ranged from 2.4% (Bangladesh) to 100% (Chile). Across the ten countries with the highest number of total confirmed cases as of 6 July 2020, we estimated that the peak number of symptomatic cases ranged from 1.4 times (Chile) to 18 times (France) larger than reported. Comparing our model with national and regional seroprevalence data where available, we find that our estimates are consistent with observed values. Finally, we estimated seroprevalence for each country. As of 7 June, our seroprevalence estimates range from 0% (many countries) to 13% (95% CrI 5.6-24%) (Belgium). CONCLUSIONS We found substantial under-ascertainment of symptomatic cases, particularly at the peak of the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, in many countries. Reported case counts will therefore likely underestimate the rate of outbreak growth initially and underestimate the decline in the later stages of an epidemic. Although there was considerable under-reporting in many locations, our estimates were consistent with emerging serological data, suggesting that the proportion of each country's population infected with SARS-CoV-2 worldwide is generally low.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy W Russell
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
| | - Nick Golding
- Telethon Kids Institute and Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Joel Hellewell
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Sam Abbott
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Lawrence Wright
- Defence Science and Technology Laboratory/Sopra Steria, Fareham, UK
| | - Carl A B Pearson
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Kevin van Zandvoort
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Christopher I Jarvis
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Hamish Gibbs
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Yang Liu
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Rosalind M Eggo
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - W John Edmunds
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Adam J Kucharski
- Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
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Watkins JL, Li M, McQuinn RP, Chan KX, McFarlane HE, Ermakova M, Furbank RT, Mares D, Dong C, Chalmers KJ, Sharp P, Mather DE, Pogson BJ. A GDSL Esterase/Lipase Catalyzes the Esterification of Lutein in Bread Wheat. Plant Cell 2019; 31:3092-3112. [PMID: 31575724 PMCID: PMC6925002 DOI: 10.1105/tpc.19.00272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2019] [Revised: 08/01/2019] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Xanthophylls are a class of carotenoids that are important micronutrients for humans. They are often found esterified with fatty acids in fruits, vegetables, and certain grains, including bread wheat (Triticum aestivum). Esterification promotes the sequestration and accumulation of carotenoids, thereby enhancing stability, particularly in tissues such as in harvested wheat grain. Here, we report on a plant xanthophyll acyltransferase (XAT) that is both necessary and sufficient for xanthophyll esterification in bread wheat grain. XAT contains a canonical Gly-Asp-Ser-Leu (GDSL) motif and is encoded by a member of the GDSL esterase/lipase gene family. Genetic evidence from allelic variants of wheat and transgenic rice (Oryza sativa) calli demonstrated that XAT catalyzes the formation of xanthophyll esters. XAT has broad substrate specificity and can esterify lutein, β-cryptoxanthin, and zeaxanthin using multiple acyl donors, yet it has a preference for triacylglycerides, indicating that the enzyme acts via transesterification. A conserved amino acid, Ser-37, is required for activity. Despite xanthophylls being synthesized in plastids, XAT accumulated in the apoplast. Based on analysis of substrate preferences and xanthophyll ester formation in vitro and in vivo using xanthophyll-accumulating rice callus, we propose that disintegration of the cellular structure during wheat grain desiccation facilitates access to lutein-promoting transesterification.plantcell;31/12/3092/FX1F1fx1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacinta L Watkins
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
| | - Ming Li
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Waite Campus, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
| | - Ryan P McQuinn
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
| | - Kai Xun Chan
- Ghent University, Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
- VIB Center for Plant Systems Biology, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Heather E McFarlane
- School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Maria Ermakova
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Translational Photosynthesis, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
| | - Robert T Furbank
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Translational Photosynthesis, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
| | - Daryl Mares
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Waite Campus, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
| | - Chongmei Dong
- Plant Breeding Institute and Sydney Institute of Agriculture, The University of Sydney, Cobbitty, New South Wales 2570, Australia
| | - Kenneth J Chalmers
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Waite Campus, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
| | - Peter Sharp
- Plant Breeding Institute and Sydney Institute of Agriculture, The University of Sydney, Cobbitty, New South Wales 2570, Australia
| | - Diane E Mather
- School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, University of Adelaide, Waite Campus, Glen Osmond, South Australia 5064, Australia
| | - Barry J Pogson
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Research School of Biology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 0200, Australia
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Krause-Jensen D, Serrano O, Apostolaki ET, Gregory DJ, Duarte CM. Seagrass sedimentary deposits as security vaults and time capsules of the human past. Ambio 2019; 48:325-335. [PMID: 30128859 PMCID: PMC6411673 DOI: 10.1007/s13280-018-1083-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2018] [Revised: 07/16/2018] [Accepted: 07/24/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Seagrass meadows form valuable ecosystems, but are considered to have low cultural value due to limited research efforts in this field. We provide evidence that seagrass deposits play a hitherto unrealized central role in preserving valuable submerged archaeological and historical heritage across the world, while also providing an historical archive of human cultural development over time. We highlight three case studies showing the significance of seagrass in protecting underwater cultural heritage in Denmark, the Mediterranean and Australia. Moreover, we present an overview of additional evidence compiled from the literature. We emphasize that this important role of seagrasses is linked to their capacity to form thick sedimentary deposits, accumulating over time, thereby covering and sealing submerged archaeological heritage. Seagrass conservation and restoration are key to protecting this buried heritage while also supporting the role of seagrass deposits as carbon sinks as well as the many other important ecosystem functions of seagrasses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dorte Krause-Jensen
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Vejlsøvej 25, 8600 Silkeborg, Denmark
| | - Oscar Serrano
- School of Science, Centre for Marine Ecosystems Research, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, WA Australia
| | - Eugenia T. Apostolaki
- Institute of Oceanography, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, PO Box 2214, 71003 Heraklion, Crete, Greece
| | - David J. Gregory
- Department of Conservation and Natural Science, The National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Carlos M. Duarte
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, 23955-6900 Saudi Arabia
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Vejlsøvej 25, 8600 Silkeborg, Denmark
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