Major global ports alter light regimes for marine biofouling communities.

Globally, there are more than 17,000 cargo-handling ports that are expected to double in capacity by 2030. Overwater structures are common in ports and create permanently shaded environments that can produce ecological shifts from primary-producer to consumer dominated communities. Yet, the extent of these structures across ports and their impact on light conditions and associated communities in different areas beneath has not been quantified.

Investigating the interactive effects of habitat type and light intensity on rocky shores.

Light availability and habitat complexity are two key drivers of community assembly. Urbanisation has been shown to affect both, with important consequences to ecological communities. On the intertidal, for instance, studies have shown that light intensity is greater on natural rocky shores than on less complex artificial habitats (seawalls), though different habitats can also experience similar light intensities, for example when shaded by urban structures.

Influence of habitat features on the colonisation of native and non-indigenous species.

Marine artificial structures provide substrates on which organisms can settle and grow. These structures facilitate establishment and spread of non-indigenous species, in part due to their distinct physical features (substrate material, movement, orientation) compared to natural habitat analogues such as rocky shores, and because following construction, they have abundant resources (space) for species to colonise. Despite the perceived importance of these habitat features, few studies have directly compared distributions of native and non-indigenous species or considered how functional identity and associated environmental preferences drive associations.

Variable effects of substrate colour and microtexture on sessile marine taxa in Australian estuaries.

Concrete infrastructure in coastal waters is increasing. While adding complex habitat and manipulating concrete mixtures to enhance biodiversity have been studied, field investigations of sub-millimetre-scale complexity and substrate colour are lacking. Here, the interacting effects of 'colour' (white, grey, black) and 'microtexture' (smooth, 0.

Facilitation of non-indigenous ascidian by marine eco-engineering interventions at an urban site.

Marine artificial structures often support lower native species diversity and more non-indigenous species (NIS), but adding complex habitat and using bioreceptive materials have the potential to mitigate these impacts. Here, the interacting effects of structural complexity (flat, complex with pits) and concrete mixture (standard, or with oyster shell or vermiculite aggregate) on recruitment were assessed at two intertidal levels at an urban site. Complex tiles had less green algal cover, oyster shell mixtures had less brown ( sp.

Material type influences the abundance but not richness of colonising organisms on marine structures.

Urbanisation of coastal areas and growth in the blue economy drive the proliferation of artificial structures in marine environments. These structures support distinct ecological communities compared to natural hard substrates, potentially reflecting differences in the materials from which they are constructed. We undertook a meta-analysis of 46 studies to compare the effects of different material types (natural or eco-friendly vs.

Modifiable Individual Risks of Perioperative Blood Transfusions and Acute Postoperative Complications in Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty.

Background: The primary aim of this study was to identify modifiable patient-related predictors of blood transfusions and perioperative complications in total hip and knee arthroplasty. Individual predictor-adjusted risks can be used to define preoperative treatment thresholds.

Methods: We performed this retrospective monocentric study in orthopaedic patients who underwent primary total knee or hip arthroplasty.

Predicting the impact of sea-level rise on intertidal rocky shores with remote sensing.

Sea-level rise is an inevitable consequence of climate change and threatens coastal ecosystems, particularly intertidal habitats that are constrained by landward development. Intertidal habitats support significant biodiversity, but also provide natural buffers from climate-threats such as increased storm events. Predicting the effects of climate scenarios on coastal ecosystems is important for understanding both the degree of habitat loss for associated ecological communities and the risk of the loss of coastal buffer zones.

Long-Term Neurodevelopmental and Functional Outcomes of Infants Born Very Preterm and/or with a Very Low Birth Weight.

Background: Birth weight (BW) is often used as a proxy for gestational age (GA) in studies on preterm birth. Recent findings indicate that, in addition to perinatal outcomes, subjects born very preterm (VP; GA < 32 weeks) differ from those with a very low birth weight (VLBW; BW < 1,500 g) in postnatal growth up to their final height.

Objective: To study whether neurodevelopmental and functional outcomes at the age of 19 years differ in VP and/or VLBW subjects.