Sailfish generate foraging opportunities for seabirds in multi-species predator aggregations.

While various marine predators form associations, the most commonly studied are those between subsurface predators and seabirds, with gulls, shearwaters or terns frequently co-occurring with dolphins, billfish or tuna. However, the mechanisms underlying these associations remain poorly understood. Three hypotheses have been proposed to explain the prevalence of these associations: (1) subsurface predators herd prey to the surface and make prey accessible to birds, (2) subsurface predators damage prey close to the surface and thereby provide food scraps to birds, and (3) attacks of underwater predators lower the cohesion of prey groups and thereby their collective defences making the prey easier to be captured by birds. Using drone footage, we investigated the interaction between Indo-Pacific sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) and terns (Onychoprion sp.) preying on schooling fish off the eastern coast of the Malaysian peninsula. Through spatio-temporal analysis of the hunting behaviour of the two predatory species and direct measures of prey cohesion we showed that terns attacked when school cohesion was low, and that this decrease in cohesion was frequently caused by sailfish attacks. Therefore, we propose that sailfish created a by-product benefit for the bird species, lending support to the hypothesis that lowering cohesion can facilitate associations between subsurface predators and seabirds.

[German S1 Guideline Long-/Post-COVID]. / S1-Leitlinie Long-/Post-COVID.

The German Society of Pneumology initiated 2021 the AWMF S1 guideline Long COVID/Post-COVID. In a broad interdisciplinary approach, this S1 guideline was designed based on the current state of knowledge.The clinical recommendations describe current Long COVID/Post-COVID symptoms, diagnostic approaches, and therapies.In addition to the general and consensus introduction, a subject-specific approach was taken to summarize the current state of knowledge.The guideline has an explicit practical claim and will be developed and adapted by the author team based on the current increase in knowledge.

Mechanisms of prey division in striped marlin, a marine group hunting predator.

Many terrestrial group-hunters cooperate to kill prey but then compete for their share with dominance being a strong predictor of prey division. In contrast, little is known about prey division in group-hunting marine predators that predominately attack small, evasive prey (e.g. fish schools). We identified individual striped marlin (Kajikia audax) hunting in groups. Groups surrounded prey but individuals took turns attacking. We found that competition for prey access led to an unequal division of prey among the predators, with 50% of the most frequently attacking marlin capturing 70-80% of the fish. Neither aggression, body size nor variation in hunting efficiency explained this skewed prey division. We did find that newly arrived groups of marlin gained on average more access to the prey. This raises the possibility that newly arrived marlin were hungrier and more motivated to feed. However, this result does not necessarily explain the unequal prey division among the predators because the skew in prey captures was found at the level of these groups. Dynamic prey division is probably widespread but under-reported in marine group-hunters and the inability of individuals to monopolize prey until satiation likely reduces the importance of social hierarchies for prey division.

Modeling Contaminant Microbes in Rivers During Both Baseflow and Stormflow.

Rivers transport contaminant microorganisms (including fecal indicator bacteria and human pathogens) long distances downstream of diffuse and point sources, posing a human health risk. We present a mobile-immobile model that incorporates transport as well as immobilization and remobilization of contaminant microbes and other fine particles during baseflow and stormflow. During baseflow conditions, hyporheic exchange flow causes particles to accumulate in streambed sediments. Remobilization of stored particles from streambed sediments occurs slowly during baseflow via hyporheic exchange flow, while remobilization is vastly increased during stormflow. Model predictions are compared to observations over a range of artificial and natural flood events in the dairy contaminated Topehaehae Stream, New Zealand. The model outputs closely matched timing and magnitude of E. coli and turbidity observations through multiple high-flow events. By accounting for both state-of-flow and hyporheic exchange processes, the model provides a valuable framework for predicting particle and contaminant microbe behavior in streams.

Rapid metabolism fosters microbial survival in the deep, hot subseafloor biosphere.

A fourth of the global seabed sediment volume is buried at depths where temperatures exceed 80 °C, a previously proposed thermal barrier for life in the subsurface. Here, we demonstrate, utilizing an extensive suite of radiotracer experiments, the prevalence of active methanogenic and sulfate-reducing populations in deeply buried marine sediment from the Nankai Trough subduction zone, heated to extreme temperature (up to ~120 °C). The small microbial community subsisted with high potential cell-specific rates of energy metabolism, which approach the rates of active surface sediments and laboratory cultures. Our discovery is in stark contrast to the extremely low metabolic rates otherwise observed in the deep subseafloor. As cells appear to invest most of their energy to repair thermal cell damage in the hot sediment, they are forced to balance delicately between subsistence near the upper temperature limit for life and a rich supply of substrates and energy from thermally driven reactions of the sedimentary organic matter.

Amyloid and APOE Status of Screened Subjects in the Elenbecestat MissionAD Phase 3 Program.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Elenbecestat, an oral BACE-1 inhibitor that has been shown to reduce Aß levels in cerebrospinal fluid, was investigated in two global phase 3 studies in early AD. Here we report on differences observed in characteristics of APOE ε4 and amyloid positive subjects in the large screening cohort. DESIGN: Screening was performed in 5 sequential tiers over a maximum of 80 days, as part of placebo controlled, double blind phase 3 studies. SETTING: Subjects were evaluated at sites in 7 regions (29 countries). PARTICIPANTS: Overall, 9758 subjects were screened. INTERVENTION: All screened subjects that were eligible received either placebo or 50 mg QID elenbecestat post randomisation. MEASUREMENTS: Gender, disease staging, APOE ε4 status, amyloid status, amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) standard uptake value ratio (SUVr) and amyloid PET Centiloid (CL) values were determined for screened subjects; by country and region. RESULTS: In this program, 44% of subjects were APOE ε4 positive. Frequency of females was similar in both APOE ε4 positive and negative groups. However, early mild AD subjects were slightly higher in the APOE ε4 positive group compared with the APOE ε4 negative group. 56% of subjects were amyloid positive. The mean age in the amyloid positive group was slightly higher than the amyloid negative group. The gender distribution was similar between amyloid groups. A lower number of mild cognitive impairment was observed in the amyloid positive group along with a higher number of early mild AD. APOE ε4 positive subjects were higher in amyloid positive group compared to the amyloid negative group. China had the lowest APOE ε4 and amyloid positivity rates with Western Europe and Oceania performing best. Subjects received florbetapir, florbetaben or flutemetamol amyloid PET tracer. Amyloid negative and positive subjects CL values were normally distributed around their respective means of 1.5 CL and 83 CL. However, there was an appreciable overlap in the 20-40 CL range. CONCLUSIONS: In this large cohort of cognitively impaired subjects, subject demographics characteristics were comparable regardless of APOE genotype or amyloid positivity. APOE ε4 positivity and amyloid positivity varied by country and by geographical region.

Persistence of plastic debris and its colonization by bacterial communities after two decades on the abyssal seafloor.

The fate of plastic debris entering the oceans is largely unconstrained. Currently, intensified research is devoted to the abiotic and microbial degradation of plastic floating near the ocean surface for an extended period of time. In contrast, the impacts of environmental conditions in the deep sea on polymer properties and rigidity are virtually unknown. Here, we present unique results of plastic items identified to have been introduced into deep-sea sediments at a water depth of 4150 m in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean more than two decades ago. The results, including optical, spectroscopic, physical and microbial analyses, clearly demonstrate that the bulk polymer materials show no apparent sign of physical or chemical degradation. Solely the polymer surface layers showed reduced hydrophobicity, presumably caused by microbial colonization. The bacterial community present on the plastic items differed significantly (p < 0.1%) from those of the adjacent natural environment by a dominant presence of groups requiring steep redox gradients (Mesorhizobium, Sulfurimonas) and a remarkable decrease in diversity. The establishment of chemical gradients across the polymer surfaces presumably caused these conditions. Our findings suggest that plastic is stable over extended times under deep-sea conditions and that prolonged deposition of polymer items at the seafloor may induce local oxygen depletion at the sediment-water interface.

[Increase of scabies and therapy resistance among German military personnel : An 8-year follow-up study in the Department of Dermatology of the Armed Forces Hospital Berlin, Germany (2012-2019)]. / Anstieg von Skabies und Therapierefraktärität bei Bundeswehrangehörigen : Acht-Jahre-Follow-up-Studie aus der Hautklinik des Bundeswehrkrankenhauses Berlin (2012­2019).

BACKGROUND: The diagnosis of scabies has become surprisingly frequent in Germany in recent years and the use of scabicides has risen significantly. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our survey was to determine whether this trend can also be detected among military personnel of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr). METHODS: The study was conducted as a retrospective single-center study over a period of 8 years from 2012 to 2019 in the Department of Dermatology of the Armed Forces Hospital Berlin, Germany. Data were generated from the hospital information system (KIS), which was searched for all scabies-coded diagnoses according to ICD10 code B86 both as outpatients and inpatients. Only first presentations with scabies diagnosis confirmed by dermoscopy or microscopy by a dermatologist were included. Inpatient treatment was required if a patient was not cured after at least three antiscabies treatment cycles in the outpatient setting. RESULTS: The data show that there has been a steady increase in the diagnosis of scabies in Bundeswehr personnel. Moreover, our data show that the number of unsuccessfully treated outpatients increased and required in-hospital treatment. CONCLUSION: We observed an increase of scabies among German military personnel who represent a typical at-risk group. These results support the observations of an increased incidence of scabies in Germany in general and especially in an at-risk population. With the general increase in scabies cases, there are also increasing numbers of German military personnel who are refractory to treatment, which was largely attributed to inadequate treatment of contact persons and individual treatment errors. Nevertheless, the data also emphasize the low overall prevalence of scabies; therefore, all diagnoses should be confirmed by dermoscopy or microscopy after 14 days whenever possible to rule out the bias of overreporting due to false-positive cases diagnosed only by clinical examination.

Linking hunting weaponry to attack strategies in sailfish and striped marlin.

Linking morphological differences in foraging adaptations to prey choice and feeding strategies has provided major evolutionary insights across taxa. Here, we combine behavioural and morphological approaches to explore and compare the role of the rostrum (bill) and micro-teeth in the feeding behaviour of sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus) and striped marlin (Kajikia audax) when attacking schooling sardine prey. Behavioural results from high-speed videos showed that sailfish and striped marlin both regularly made rostrum contact with prey but displayed distinct strategies. Marlin used high-speed dashes, breaking schools apart, often contacting prey incidentally or tapping at isolated prey with their rostra; while sailfish used their rostra more frequently and tended to use a slower, less disruptive approach with more horizontal rostral slashes on cohesive prey schools. Capture success per attack was similar between species, but striped marlin had higher capture rates per minute. The rostra of both species are covered with micro-teeth, and micro-CT imaging showed that species did not differ in average micro-tooth length, but sailfish had a higher density of micro-teeth on the dorsal and ventral sides of their rostra and a higher amount of micro-teeth regrowth, suggesting a greater amount of rostrum use is associated with more investment in micro-teeth. Our analysis shows that the rostra of billfish are used in distinct ways and we discuss our results in the broader context of relationships between morphological and behavioural feeding adaptations across species.

Somatic gene editing ameliorates skeletal and cardiac muscle failure in pig and human models of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Frameshift mutations in the DMD gene, encoding dystrophin, cause Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), leading to terminal muscle and heart failure in patients. Somatic gene editing by sequence-specific nucleases offers new options for restoring the DMD reading frame, resulting in expression of a shortened but largely functional dystrophin protein. Here, we validated this approach in a pig model of DMD lacking exon 52 of DMD (DMDΔ52), as well as in a corresponding patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cell model. In DMDΔ52 pigs1, intramuscular injection of adeno-associated viral vectors of serotype 9 carrying an intein-split Cas9 (ref. 2) and a pair of guide RNAs targeting sequences flanking exon 51 (AAV9-Cas9-gE51) induced expression of a shortened dystrophin (DMDΔ51-52) and improved skeletal muscle function. Moreover, systemic application of AAV9-Cas9-gE51 led to widespread dystrophin expression in muscle, including diaphragm and heart, prolonging survival and reducing arrhythmogenic vulnerability. Similarly, in induced pluripotent stem cell-derived myoblasts and cardiomyocytes of a patient lacking DMDΔ52, AAV6-Cas9-g51-mediated excision of exon 51 restored dystrophin expression and amelioreate skeletal myotube formation as well as abnormal cardiomyocyte Ca2+ handling and arrhythmogenic susceptibility. The ability of Cas9-mediated exon excision to improve DMD pathology in these translational models paves the way for new treatment approaches in patients with this devastating disease.