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Slight modifications to the manufacturer’s protocol (Qiagen #12966-10, now discontinued and replaced with #12988-10) enabled the successful extraction of high-quality DNA and RNA from permafrost peat samples. Integrating the DNA and RNA purification steps immediately after the extraction process helped streamline the workflow, resulting in consistent quality nucleic acids suitable for downstream s
Soil microorganisms are pivotal in the global carbon cycle, but the viruses that affect them and their impact on ecosystems are less understood. In this study, we explored the diversity, dynamics, and ecology of soil viruses through 379 metagenomes collected annually from 2010 to 2017. These samples spanned the seasonally thawed active layer of a permafrost thaw gradient, which included palsa, bog
Permanent ponds represent key landscape components that support biodiversity and supply various ecosystem services. Notably, the export of aquatic subsidies to land via emerging insects, may significantly influence terrestrial food webs. Various factors, including eutrophication, can influence these exports. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), which greatly enhance consumer fitness, are among the
Plant-insect interactions are crucial for sustaining biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in grassland ecosystems. Mutualistic pollination and antagonistic herbivory drive ecological processes such as nutrient cycling, community assembly, and food web stability. However, anthropogenic pressures, including land-use change, agricultural intensification, and environmental stressors like drought and
Urban environments are exposed to a substantial range of anthropic pressures, including chemical exposure. While trace metals and legacy pollutants have been well documented, the extent of wildlife exposure to emerging contaminants has received little attention, in terrestrial mammals. Concentrations of trace elements (Ag, Al, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn) and 48 organic pollutants (Polyc
Background: Current guidelines for initial management of traumatic brain injury (TBI) support decision making, but they are rarely validated. The Scandinavian guideline for management of children with TBI (SNC16) was developed to minimise the use of cranial computed tomography (cCT) without compromising safety, but the performance of the guideline in a real-world population is unknown. We aimed to
Dune slacks are biodiverse seasonal wetlands within sand dune systems, strongly influenced by the dynamics of the local groundwater regime. Future climate predictions indicate strong adverse impact on the hydrology and therefore ecology of these wetland ecosystems. In this study we aimed to find the most appropriate hydrological and ecological indicators to summarise dune slack plant community res
The widespread contamination of urban soils by airborne microplastics (MPs) is an emerging environmental issue, particularly in urban allotment gardens with home-grown food. This study investigates the vertical distribution of MP in three such gardens in Berlin, Germany, over 90 days. Soil samples were collected at three depths (0-1 cm, 1–15 cm, and 15–30 cm) and analyzed for MP composition and oc
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change needs to do more to include the expertise and voices of women, even as numbers and policies improve.
Understanding and addressing the complex societal sustainability challenges requires applying novel approaches, devising innovative assessment frameworks, and adopting methods and tools from other research fields. Dr Jagdeep Singh has been conducting inter- and trans-disciplinary research on these challenges impacting academia and society. He has pursued university degrees in Electrical Engineerin
The phyllosphere, particularly the leaf surface of plants, harbors a diverse range of microbiomes that play a vital role in the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems. However, our understanding of microbial successions and their impact on functional genes during plant community development is limited. In this study, considering core and satellite microbial taxa, we characterized the phyllosphere m
The Long-Term Global Goal (LTGG) is the focal point for addressing future climate change. This paper explores a specific institutional context: the Structured Expert Dialogue (SED) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Set up as a platform for interaction between experts and UN negotiators, the SED is a site where scientific information about the LTGG and net-zero was translat
Sincrotrone Trieste, collaborating with various institutions, has recently begun a 3-year project to develop a UV/VUV free-electron laser on the ELETTRA storage ring. The main features and novel technical aspects of the project are described, including the design of the optical cavity and undulator, the electron beam characteristics and a first assessment of the predicted laser performance. Prelim
Generating scientific advice to environmental management involves assessments with complex models, sparse data, and challenging empirical experiments, necessitating the integration of expert judgment with data into scientific models. To integrate expert judgement, assessors might elicit judgement by experts as quantiles, find a probability distribution that matches the quantiles, and add this info
Delivering a revolution in evidence use requires a cultural change across society. For a wide range of groups (practitioners, knowledge brokers, organisations, organisational leaders, policy makers, funders, researchers, journal publishers, the wider conservation community, educators, writers, and journalists), options are described to facilitate a change in practice, and a series of downloadable
The paper outlines a comprehensive set of recommendations, advocating for a systems thinking approach and acknowledging the importance of engaging with the entire food system.Embracing protein diversification fosters innovation, has the potential to create substantial economic opportunities and position EU Member States at the forefront of rapidly evolving sectors spanning and integrating biotechn
Soil biodiversity constitutes the biological pillars of ecosystem services provided by soils worldwide. Soil life is threatened by intense agricultural management and shifts in climatic conditions as two important global change drivers which are not often jointly studied under field conditions. We addressed the effects of experimental short-term drought over the wheat growing season on soil organi
Cities are experiencing numerous challenges, adversely affecting human health and wellbeing. Urban green space provides ecosystem services that are important to meet urban challenges. One type of urban green space is private gardens (yards) that make up an essential part of many urban areas. Gardens can support urban biodiversity and provide cultural ecosystem services (CES) to its owner. However,
A common migratory pattern in birds is that northerly breeding populations migrate to more southerly non-breeding sites compared to southerly breeding populations (leap-frog migration). Not only do populations experience differences in migration distances, but also different environmental conditions, which may vary spatiotemporally within their annual cycles, creating distinctive selective pressur
