Hopperleblanc4218

The analysis of stable isotopes in different tissues has been widely used to obtain information on the ecology and nutritional patterns of wildlife. The isotope ratios of the stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen (δ13C and δ15N) analysed in different tissues are directly related to the animal's diet and, to some extent, to the environment where the individual has growth. Specifically, this type of analysis in hair samples has become relevant as it provides information on the quality and long-term composition of the diet that produced the isotope accumulation during the tissue growth. We took samples of wild boar (Sus scrofa) hair from 7 different populations in the south-west of Spain (Mediterranean habitats), in the 2018/2019 hunting season. The main objectives of this study were (i) to investigate the use of hair stable isotopes to reveal differences in composition and quality of the diet of wild boar within the same population or between populations, and (ii) to use hair isotopes as a tool to uncover hidden management practices that may occur in hunting areas associated with the use of supplementary feeding or even captive breeding and release. Each animal had a hair (long 10 cm) analysed in duplicate, previously cut into parts of equal size (from the oldest part of the hair to the most recent part), that were analysed separately. We found differences in δ13C and δ 15N between hair parts and populations, which can be related to management actions at different times during the hair growth. Moreover, the use of corn, a type of plant not occurring naturally in the study area, can be documented with the isotope analysis to prove unauthorized supplementary feeding or captive origin of wild boar in hunting areas.The increasing worldwide demand for traditional herbs has been met by growing cultivated herbs. It is undoubtedly very important to seek a reasonable cultivation mode for the yield, quality and long-term production stability of traditional herbs. In this study, licorice (Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch.) was investigated using a field experiment and a process-based model (Denitrification-Decomposition (DNDC) model) to study the effects of mulching methods on root yield and soil organic carbon (SOC) long-term changes. The field experiment contained four treatments plat planting without mulching (CK), ridge-furrow maize straw mulching (SM), ridge-furrow plastic film mulching (RP), and plat planting with plastic film mulching (FP). Licorice root yield was significantly higher in the SM, RP, and FP than in the CK. SM, RP and FP treatments increased the accumulation of liquiritin and glycyrrhizin in licorice roots. The SM significantly increased SOC content, SOC stocks, SOC sequestration rate, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) compared to CK, but there was no significant difference in SOC and DOC among CK, RP and FP. The DNDC model was calibrated based on the field test data and showed that under the four CMIP6 SSPs scenarios, the predicted root yield of each treatment was increasing obviously. The production and stability of RP and FP were greater than CK and SM. The SOC under SM showed an increasing trend, whereas it continuously decreased under CK, RP, and FP in the future. The SOC of simulated RS treatment of straw incorporation plus a plastic film mulch was always at the highest value in all the treatments, and its root yield was slightly lower than that of RP and FP, the latter both were very close. Therefore, it is suggested that RS should be adopted to achieve sustained high yield while maintaining a high SOC level.Triclosan (TCS) is widely used in personal care products and has become a contaminant ubiquitously found in the aquatic environment. It is reported exposure to triclosan can cause serious toxic effects on aquatic animals. However, the molecular mechanisms about long-term exposure to TCS-induced reproductive toxicity are not well elucidated. In the present study, adult zebrafish were exposed to TCS (2, 20 and 200 μg/L) for 150 days, and then the reproductive capacity assessment, steroid hormone and VTG quantitative measurement, histopathology observation and RNA sequencing analysis were performed to investigate the effects of TCS on its reproduction. The results indicated that long-term exposure to TCS causes the regulation disorder of the endocrine system, resulting in a reduction of the number of normal germ cells, and ultimately a decrease in the hatching rate and survival rate of offspring. This study revealed the toxic effects and contributed to our deep understanding about the potential disease of TCS exposure in the aquatic environment.A decade-resolution study of peat cores from four different locations around Yuanchi Lake, a small shallow maar lake in the Changbai Mountains of northeastern China, has established that peat deposition around this lake amplified at ca. 1800 CE with accumulation rates that differ among the four closely spaced sites. Comparisons of the n-alkane distributions of typical plants and the distributions in the peat cores indicate that the differences in the n-alkane contents at the four sites around the lake are consequences of differences in the peat-forming plant communities that have developed on the lake edges. These floral differences likely resulted from different littoral water depths from small but significant variations in bottom topography around the lake, compounded by progressive infilling of the edges at different rates as peat accumulated. Moreover, several n-alkane-inferred variations in peat accumulation rates from 1800 to 1950 CE are common to the four sites and appear to reflect local cold and dry periods. We infer that these periods are associated with nearby volcanic eruptions in the Changbai Mountains and possibly to distal eruptions in the tropical Pacific. Since 1950 CE, decreases in peat accumulations around the lake may result from enhanced peat decomposition as the water table declined in response to a warm and dry climate and to anthropogenic impacts on the lake catchment.Today, the world faces an enormous increase in plastic waste pollution caused by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Plastic pollution has been already one of the greatest threats to our planet before the Coronavirus outbreak. The disposal of millions of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the form of face masks has significantly contributed to the generation of plastic waste and has exacerbated plastic pollution. In an attempt to mitigate pollution caused by the excess PPE waste, an innovative way was developed in this research to reduce pandemic-generated wastes by using the shredded face mask (SFM) fibers as an additive to hot mix asphalt (HMA) to enhance rutting resistance. Rutting or permanent deformation is one of the major distresses of asphalt pavement. Since the SFM behaves as a semi-liquid between 115.5 and 160 °C, which is in the range of HMA mixing and paving temperature, it can function as a binding agent to glue the aggregates. When the pavement is cooled down to ambient temperature, the hardened SFM can provide stability and stiffness to HMA. Based on the results of this study, the modified mixes exhibited excellent resistance to permanent deformation under the Asphalt Pavement Analyzer (APA), as rutting depth values were reduced from 3.0 mm to 0.93 mm by increasing the SFM content from 0% to 1.5%. From the rutting test results and premature distress mechanism study, the appropriate addition of SFM modifiers could improve the high-temperature properties of HMA that can be used to strengthen high-compression and shearing zones in the pavement structure.A critical review of Tosepu et al. (2020a) "Correlation between weather and Covid-19 pandemic in Jakarta, Indonesia" identifies five questions about the data, analysis, and interpretation of their results. These questions are the number of days and dates of data that go into the analysis, interpretation of the "rapid increase" in COVID-19, 0 °C values of temperature suspected to be missing data, no time lag between the weather on the day of infection and the date the case was recorded in the database, and the significance of their results. The scientific community would benefit from reading answers to the five questions from Tosepu et al.Wind energy resources will be impacted by climate change. A novel hybrid ensemble technique is presented to improve long-term wind speed projections using Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) data from global climate models. The technique constructs an optimized system, which relies on a Genetic Algorithm and an Enhanced Colliding Bodies Optimization technique. All trans-Retinal Next, the performance of the proposed method over a target area (United Kingdom) is evaluated between 1950 and 2014. Finally, to avoid single-valued deterministic projections and mitigate the uncertainties, the improved wind speed data series are investigated considering different climate-change scenarios - the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) - for the period 2015-2050. The performance of different CMIP6 models is found to differ over time and space. In the target area the data derived from the Hybrid model confirm that extreme wind events will occur more frequently. The monthly mean wind speed is expected to increase from 3.41 m/s during 1950-2014 to 3.60, 3.63, 3.48, 3.59 and 3.61 m/s during the study period in the SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, SSP3-7.0, SSP4-6.0 and SSP5-8.5 climate-change scenarios, respectively. More generally, the results prove that the Hybrid model is highly effective in improving the accuracy, direction and geographical patterns of the data, and this novel method can narrow the potential uncertainties of numerical simulations.Antibiotics have been widely used for disease treatment and may pose adverse effects on human health due to increasing presence of antibiotic-resistant genes in environment. Therefore, it is important to understand antibiotic use in a specific region or country. China is a major producer of antibiotic and has a large number of consumers. In this work, wastewater samples were collected from 76 wastewater treatment plants in 31 major cities covering all of the geographic regions of China. Concentrations of eight metabolites of sulfonamide, quinolone and macrolide antibiotics were determined. The consumption levels of corresponding antibiotics were estimated based on wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) approach. Desmethyl ofloxacin, desethylene norfloxacin, desmethyl azithromycin and N4-acetyl sulfamethoxazole were detected in all or the overwhelming majority of wastewater samples. The estimated ∑8Antibiotics consumption levels ranged from 275.1 ± 139.4 mg/1000 inh/d (Nanchang) to 3860.9 ± 1332.3 mg/1000 inh/d (Harbin) with a mean level of 1170.0 ± 452.1 mg/1000 inh/d. Quinolones accounted for the highest proportion (74.3%, national average contribution) in the total consumption level, with norfloxacin being the dominant one (38.4%), followed by ofloxacin (29.1%) and ciprofloxacin (6.8%). The ∑8Antibiotics consumption level in northern China (1517.0 ± 1022.8 mg/1000 inh/d) was statistically higher than the level in southern China (1060.7 ± 989.1 mg/1000 inh/d) (t-test, p 0.05). The overview of antibiotics consumption derived from this work can serve as a baseline to assess the implementation of related plans/policies in China.