Effect-based and (non-)target chemical analyses reveal concerning levels of emerging contaminants in urban streams in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Water contamination by micropollutants is a global issue, yet there is limited information from low-income regions. To address this, we evaluated surface water quality in rapidly growing Sub-Saharan area of Malawi lacking wastewater treatment. Integrated assessment of passive sample extracts representing wet and dry seasons combined effect-based approach with in vitro bioassays, target and non-target chemical analyses (NTS).

Density-dependent network structuring within and across wild animal systems.

Theory predicts that high population density leads to more strongly connected spatial and social networks, but how local density drives individuals' positions within their networks is unclear. This gap reduces our ability to understand and predict density-dependent processes. Here we show that density drives greater network connectedness at the scale of individuals within wild animal populations.

Does online information about hormone replacement therapy (or menopause hormone therapy) reflect indications from the British National Formulary and guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: a cross-sectional study of UK media.

Objectives: To describe: (1) the most visible information (from individuals or organisations) on UK social media regarding hormone replacement therapy (HRT)/menopause hormone treatment for menopause; (2) claims made by these sources for HRT and testosterone outwith the indications specified by the British National Formulary (BNF) and the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (ie, vasomotor instability, vaginal dryness, low mood associated with the menopause and, for testosterone, low libido after treatment with HRT) and for use for the prevention of future ill health and (3) conflicts of interest of commentators.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Online references to HRT, for use in menopause, in UK online media, comprising Facebook, Google, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, 30 top ranked hits between 1 January 2022 and 1 June 2023 and Twitter (X) up to 1 May 2024.

Diversity and abundance of ring nucleases in type III CRISPR-Cas loci.

Most type III CRISPR-Cas systems facilitate immune responses against invading mobile genetic elements such as phages by generating cyclic oligoadenylates (cOAs). Downstream effectors activated by cOAs are typically non-specific proteins that induce damage to essential cellular components, thereby preventing phage epidemics. Owing to these toxic effects, it is crucial that the production and concentration of cOAs remain under tight regulatory control during infection-free periods or when deactivating the immune response after clearing an infection.

Intra-population isotopic niche variation in common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) from the northern Adriatic Sea.

Among-individual variability in animal behaviour and diet leads to a plethora of mini-niches within a population's general niche. Such variability is directly or indirectly linked to inter- and intra-specific competition, behavioural adaptation and variation in foraging tactics, which may lead to evolutionary divergence and speciation but is also relevant to population resilience and conservation. We used boat surveys, photo-identification techniques, biopsy sampling and stable isotope analysis (δC, δN) to study the intra-population isotopic niche variation in an apex predator, the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), in the northern Adriatic Sea.

Stocking African catfish in Lake Victoria provides effective biocontrol of snail vectors of Schistosoma mansoni.

In areas of high infection prevalence, effective control of schistosomiasis - one of the most important Neglected Tropical Diseases - requires supplementing medical treatment with interventions targeted at the environmental reservoir of disease. In addition to provision of clean water, reliable sanitation, and molluscicide use to control the obligate intermediate host snail, top-down biological control of parasite-competent snails has recently gained increasing interest in the scientific community. However, evidence that natural predators can effectively reduce snail abundance and, ultimately, transmission risk to vulnerable human populations remains limited.

Chiral molecular 4f qubits by post functionalization.

We herein demonstrate the synthesis of a pair of enantiomerically pure Yb complexes by post-functionalisation of the parent Yb complex condensation with an enantiomerically pure chiral amine. The enantiomeric pair is structurally characterised by single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction, showing that it crystalises in the 222 Sohncke space group with Flack parameters close to zero, which confirms their enantiopurity. Circular Dichroism (CD) and absorption spectroscopies in the NIR reveal sharp F → F f-f transitions, with values up to 0.

Evaluating the risk factors for Lubinus SP II femoral stem fractures: A case series of 5 primary total hip arthroplasty patients with a mean follow-up of 7.5 years.

The reported rate of femoral stem fracture after total hip arthroplasty (THA) varies between less than 0.1 and 3.4%.

Traces of phylogeny and ecology in hippocampal neuron numbers.

It is not known how selective pressures shape the numbers of interconnected neurons in defined neural circuits during the phylogeny of mammals. Consequently, models of function are without phylogenetic bounds, and species differences in neuronal makeup cannot be linked to ecological factors that generate selective pressures. Based on data from 65 species belonging to 11 orders, we here provide an analysis of five interconnected neuron populations in the circuitry of the hippocampus, the forebrain region encoding episodic memories.

HLA-B*15:01-positive severe COVID-19 patients lack CD8 T cell pools with highly expanded public clonotypes.

Understanding host factors driving asymptomatic versus severe disease outcomes is of key importance if we are to control emerging and re-emerging viral infections. HLA-B*15:01 has been associated with asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection in nonhospitalized individuals of European ancestry, with protective immunity attributed to preexisting cross-reactive CD8 T-cells directed against HLA-B*15:01-restricted Spike-derived S peptide (B15/SCD8 T-cells). However, fundamental questions remained on the abundance and clonotypic nature of CD8 T-cell responses in HLA-B*15:01-positive patients who succumbed to life-threatening COVID-19.

The subjective experience of trauma within structural marginality: An ethnography of mental health among survivors of gender-based violence in Italy.

Background: Gender-based violence (GBV) has multi-dimensional impacts on women's mental health and everyday life, often leading to experiences of trauma, PTSD and co-morbid mental health conditions. Institutional practices and strategies designed to support survivors of gender-based violence can collide with, overshadow and misapprehend women's own subjective experiences.

Aims: This study aims to highlight the importance of subjective accounts in understanding women's mental health and the complexity of trauma experienced by female survivors of gender-based violence.

Development and validation of a postpartum cardiovascular disease risk prediction model in women incorporating reproductive and pregnancy-related predictors.

Background: Each year, over 700,000 pregnancies occur in the UK, with up to 10% affected by complications such as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and gestational diabetes mellitus. Pregnancy-related complications and reproductive factors are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) later in life. Our aim was to determine whether adding pregnancy factors to a prediction model with established CVD risk factors improves 10-year risk prediction of CVD in postpartum women, using QRISK®-3 as a benchmark model.

A laboratory-focussed desk review of health systems in Uganda, Kenya, and the UK to respond to current and future pandemics.

Background: Laboratory systems play a crucial role in managing diseases effectively, and the COVID-19 pandemic serves as a prime example. The pandemic underscored the need to make laboratory health systems more resilient and robust to respond to future pandemics.

Methods: We conducted a desk review guided by the six World Health Organization health system building blocks (health service delivery, health financing, medical products, vaccines, and technologies, human resources for health, governance, and health information systems).

Spatial and temporal heterogeneity foster high fish biodiversity in an Amazonian floodplain.

The high biodiversity of tropical ecosystems was one of the earliest ecological patterns to be reported, but the ecological processes that maintain this diversity remain unresolved. Here, we revisit Pianka's 1966 hypothesis that spatial heterogeneity contributes to tropical biodiversity. Using a comprehensive survey of a fish community in a central Amazonian floodplain, conducted over the 2003, 2012, and 2022 hydrological cycles, we ask if the high levels of environmental heterogeneity (both temporal and spatial) that characterize this ecosystem constrain the capacity of species to dominate local assemblages.

A review of post-exposure strategies for high-consequence viral pathogens in the laboratory.

SUMMARYLaboratory-acquired infections (LAIs), particularly those from high-risk viruses, pose significant threats to exposed individuals and to the general public. In this review, we evaluate the existing evidence for viral LAI prevention, including available vaccinations, post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), and follow-up procedures following occupational exposure to Risk Group 3 and 4 viral infectious agents within clinical testing laboratories. This review provides guidance on the therapeutic options and follow-up, all essential for preparedness planning and timely management in the event of exposure.

OLED illuminated metasurfaces for holographic image projection.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are thin film optoelectronic devices that feature simple fabrication, light weight and broad tunability, which makes them widely used in mobile phone and TV displays. As a flat and surface-emitting light source, OLEDs are also used in emerging applications such as optical wireless communications, biophotonics and sensing, where the ability to integrate with other technologies makes them good candidates to realise miniaturised photonic platforms. Control of the OLED far-field emission is increasingly important for both displays and these emerging applications.

Sexual selection in wild populations of seed bugs: the role of size in pre-copulatory mate choice by females and males.

Although sexual selection is a well-established part of evolutionary biology, controversies remain about the roles of males and females. For instance, despite clear evidence of male mate choice across a very broad range of species, traditional views of male and female sex roles - the former competitive, the latter choosy - are still common. In addition, studies looking at mate choice in natural populations, especially in terms of male mate choice, remain limited.

Willingness to use long-acting injectable pre-exposure prophylaxis among key populations at a large HIV prevention clinic in Kampala, Uganda: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Long-acting injectable (LAI)-PrEP provides better protection against HIV compared to oral PrEP, which requires taking a daily pill. Our study aimed to assess knowledge about oral and LAI-PrEP and identify factors associated with willingness to use LAI-PrEP among key populations (KPs) in Uganda.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study at the Most at Risk Populations Initiative (MARPI) clinic between November and December 2021.

From 'living death' to 'becoming-with': caring for dementia beyond the human.

This essay provides a critical overview of historical and contemporary conceptualisations of selfhood in dementia. We explore the intersections of psychological and sociological research, as well as care practices, in dementia scholarship and how these have evolved in the years leading to and proceeding the start of the twenty-first century. Focusing on historical discourses of dementia and the metaphor of dementia as a 'living death', this essay maps the development of prominent conceptualisations of dementia in western cultures, from their roots in Cartesian philosophy to modernist values and existential anxieties.

Comparing visual and acoustic detectability of two coastal cetacean species off Sindhudurg, India, to better inform integrated survey protocol.

The Indian Ocean humpback dolphin (Sousa plumbea) and the Indo-Pacific finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides) are resident to the inshore waters of India. Despite urgent conservation concerns facing both species, population assessments and long-term monitoring efforts face several challenges, particularly due to limitations in conducting conventional visual surveys. Our study explores the use of combined acoustic and visual surveys along a 376 km[Formula: see text] area off the Sindhudurg coast, India, to address these limitations.

Allometric scale model reveals temperature effects on growth and reproduction in Daphnia magna.

Climate change amplifies temperature variability, thereby subjecting organisms to increased stress as they more frequently encounter temperatures outside their optimal range. Temperature influences resource distribution across fundamental processes in organisms, such as metabolism, reproduction and overall fitness, yet energy allocation strategies are primarily understood under stable temperature conditions. Predicting organisms' responses to fluctuating temperatures, however, remains challenging.

Identifying clusters of multimorbid disease and differences by age, sex, and socioeconomic status: A systematic review.

Background: The prevalence of multimorbidity has been growing due to the ageing population and increasingly unhealthy lifestyles. There is interest in identifying clusters of disease and how they are influenced.

Aims: This systematic review aims to (i) investigate the most common clusters in the adult population with multimorbidity (ii) identify methods used to define clusters (iii) examine if clusters differ based on age, sex and socioeconomic status.