How selfish genes succeed

Research on selfish genes provides new insight on meiotic drive systems

Peer-Reviewed Publication

STOWERS INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH

 

IMAGE: ILLUSTRATION DEPICTING THE MECHANISM AND DISTRIBUTION OF ANTIDOTE AND POISON EXPRESSION. AT THE START OF MEIOSIS, BOTH PROTEINS ARE EXPRESSED. LATER, ANTIDOTE IS ONLY FOUND OUTSIDE OF SPORES WHILE POISON PROTEIN IS UBIQUITOUS THROUGHOUT. FINALLY, THE MATURE SPORES THAT INHERIT WTF4 CONTAIN POISON AND ANTIDOTE, WHILE THE OTHER SPORES ARE DESTROYED. view more 

CREDIT: STOWERS INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH

KANSAS CITY, MO—Dec. 7, 2022—New findings from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research uncover critical insights about how a dangerous selfish gene—considered to be a parasitic portion of DNA—functions and survives. Understanding this dynamic is a valuable resource for the broader community studying meiotic drive systems.  

A new study, published in PLoS Genetics on Dec. 7, 2022, reveals how a selfish gene in yeast uses a poison-antidote strategy that enables its function and likely has facilitated its long-term evolutionary success. This strategy is an important addition for scientists studying similar systems including teams that are designing synthetic drive systems for pathogenic pest control. Collective and collaborative advancement on understanding drive may one day lead to the eradication of pest populations that harm crops or even humans in the case of vector borne diseases.   

“It’s quite dangerous for a genome to encode a protein that has the capacity to kill the organism,” said Stowers Associate Investigator SaraH Zanders, Ph.D. “However, understanding the biology of these selfish elements could help us build synthetic drivers to modify natural populations.”  

Drivers are selfish genes that can spread in a population at higher rates than most other genes, without benefiting the organism. Previous research from the Zanders Lab revealed that a driver gene in yeast, wtf4, produces poison protein capable of destroying all offspring. However, for a given parent cell’s chromosome pair, drive is achieved when wtf4 is found only on one chromosome. The effect is a simultaneous rescue of only those offspring that inherit the drive allele, by delivering a dose of a very similar protein that counteracts the poison, the antidote.    

Building upon this work, the study, led by former Predoctoral Researcher Nicole Nuckolls, Ph.D., and current Predoctoral Researcher Ananya Nidamangala Srinivasa in the Zanders Lab, discovered that differences in the timing of generating poison and antidote proteins from wtf4 and their unique distribution patterns within developing spores are fundamental to the drive process. 

The team has developed a model they are continuing to investigate for how the poison acts to kill the spore—the equivalent of a human egg or sperm in yeast. Their results indicate that poison proteins cluster together, potentially disrupting proper folding of other proteins required for the cell to function. Because the wtf4 gene encodes both poison and antidote, the antidote is very similar in form and groups together with the poison. However, the antidote has an extra part that appears to isolate the poison-antidote clusters by bringing them to the cell’s garbage can, the vacuole.  

To understand how selfish genes function during reproduction, the researchers looked at the beginning of spore formation and found poison protein expressed within all developing spores and the sac surrounding them, while the antidote protein was only seen in low concentration throughout the sac. Later in development, the antidote was enriched inside of the spores that inherited wtf4 from the parent yeast cell.  

The researchers found that spores that inherited the driver gene manufactured additional antidote protein inside the spore to neutralize the poison and ensure their survival.  

The team also discovered that a particular molecular switch that controls many other genes involved in spore formation also controls the expression of poison, but not antidote, from the wtf4 gene. The switch is essential for yeast reproduction and is inextricably linked to wtf4, helping to explain why this selfish gene is so successful at evading any attempts by the host to disable the switch.  

“One of the reasons we are thinking these things have stuck around for so long – they’ve used this sneaky strategy of exploiting the same essential switch that turns on yeast reproduction,” said Nidamangala Srinivasa.  

“If we could manipulate these DNA parasites to be expressed in mosquitoes and drive their destruction, it may be a way to control pest species,” said Nuckolls. 

Additional authors include Anthony Mok, María Angélica Bravo Núñez, Ph.D., Jeffery Lange, Ph.D., Todd J. Gallagher, and Chris W. Seidel, Ph.D. 

This work was funded by the Searle Award, the National Institutes of General Medical Sciences (awards: R00GM114436, DP2GM132936), the National Cancer Institute (award: F99CA234523), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (award: F31HD097974) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and institutional support from the Stowers Institute for Medical Research. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH. 

About the Stowers Institute for Medical Research 

Founded in 1994 through the generosity of Jim Stowers, founder of American Century Investments, and his wife, Virginia, the Stowers Institute for Medical Research is a non-profit, biomedical research organization with a focus on foundational research. Its mission is to expand our understanding of the secrets of life and improve life’s quality through innovative approaches to the causes, treatment, and prevention of diseases. 

The Institute consists of 17 independent research programs. Of the approximately 500 members, over 370 are scientific staff that include principal investigators, technology center directors, postdoctoral scientists, graduate students, and technical support staff. Learn more about the Institute at www.stowers.org and about its graduate program at www.stowers.org/gradschool. 

CAPTION

Progression of meiosis from initiation to eight hours (each row). Left and middle columns show antidote and poison protein distribution, respectively, as spores develop. Right column is the combined distribution of poison (cyan) and antidote (magenta) during spore development.

CREDIT

Stowers Institute for Medical Research

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JOURNAL

PLoS Genetics

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Cells

ARTICLE TITLE

S. pombe wtf drivers use dual transcriptional regulation and selective protein exclusion from spores to cause meiotic drive

Suicidal thoughts surged as people struggled with finances, isolation during COVID-19

Suicidal ideation increased to alarming levels in 2020, particularly among people who had trouble paying rent or who felt lonely.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BOSTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH

The sudden economic fallout at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic affected millions of people and contributed to a three-fold rise in persistent or elevated depression in the United States. But the extent of this toll on mental health is still coming to light.

Now, a new study led by Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researchers reveals that suicidal thoughts increased substantially, as well, during the pandemic.

Published in the journal PLOS One, the study found that suicidal ideation was nearly five times higher at the start of the pandemic and disproportionately affected people living in low-income households. People who had difficulty paying rent or who felt lonely—two problems that intensified during COVID due to social distancing to reduce spread of COVID-19 and the unprecedented shock to the economy—also reported a substantial rise in suicidal thoughts.

The study provides valuable insight into the short- and long-term mental health effects of the pandemic. As people continue to experience multiple COVID-related stressors, the researchers emphasize the need for policies and programs that provide financial and social support, particularly to vulnerable populations.

“Everyone felt the toll of mental distress from the challenges of the pandemic and unemployment crisis, and people who are low-income and housing insecure were most impacted,” says study lead and corresponding author Dr. Julia Raifman, assistant professor of health law, policy & management at BUSPH. “Policies and programs that help people stay in their homes and avoid economic hardship may make a big difference for improving mental health. It is also key to ensure that there are mental health services and supports for low-income children and adults.”

For the study, Raifman and colleagues examined nationally representative survey data on demographics, suicidality, and a variety of pandemic-related stressors, including COVID-19 illness and bereavement, income, job loss, financial distress, loneliness, and more. The data included responses from more than 1,400 participants in the COVID-19 Life Stressors Impact on Mental Health and Well-Being (CLIMB) survey from March 31, 2020 to April 13, 2020, and more than 5,000 participants in the 2017-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

The prevalence of suicidal thoughts increased from 3.4 percent in 2017-2018 pre-pandemic, to 16.3 percent after the start of the pandemic. The spike was greatest among participants who earned less than $20,000 each year, Hispanic participants, and participants ages 18 to 29. Suicidal ideation also burdened 31 percent of people who had trouble paying their rent, and 25 percent of people who struggled with loneliness.

“It was striking that around a quarter of low-income persons, Hispanic persons, and people ages 18-29 years reported suicidal ideation in 2020,” says study coauthor Dr. Catherine Ettman, postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Mental Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. “These findings add evidence to the growing body of work showing the mental health disparities experienced during the pandemic across asset and demographic groups. The early pandemic particularly affected the mental health of young people, persons with low assets, and groups that have been traditionally marginalized by society.”

Job loss was not associated with suicidal ideation in the CLIMB survey, but further research could provide insight into the potential effects of prolonged COVID-related unemployment, and whether suicidality risks differ by wealth. In previous work, the researchers found links between assets and mental health, suggesting that people with higher income and savings are less likely to experience depression, a risk factor for suicidality.

“We are now starting to see the long term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says study coauthor Dr. Salma Abdalla, research fellow at BUSPH. “The effects of the pandemic will be felt for a long time, particularly for young persons who will navigate the health and mental health consequences of this moment across the lifecourse.”

Policies that target populations experiencing financial distress and social isolation could serve as a valuable tool for suicide prevention, as well as policies that strengthen firearm restrictions—the primary means of suicide deaths—the researchers say.

 “I hope we may see more research on how policies and programs that jointly maximize health and economic well-being,” Dr. Raifman says. “After the period when we conducted this study, Congress implemented stimulus checks, the expanded child tax credit, and unemployment insurance expansion that led to record reductions in poverty—benefiting health and reducing economic hardship for millions of Americans. This shows us the best of what is possible with policies, and I hope we will see more enduring federal and state investments in similar policies.”

The study's senior author was Dr. Sandro Galea, BUSPH dean and Robert A. Knox Professor. The study was also coauthored by Dr. Lorraine Dean, associate professor in the Departments of Epidemiology and Health Policy and Law at Bloomberg SPH and at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Alexandra Skinner, a doctoral student at Brown University School of Public Health; and Colleen Barry, inaugural dean of the Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy.

**

About Boston University School of Public Health
Founded in 1976, Boston University School of Public Health is one of the top five ranked private schools of public health in the world. It offers master's- and doctoral-level education in public health. The faculty in six departments conduct policy-changing public health research around the world, with the mission of improving the health of populations—especially the disadvantaged, underserved, and vulnerable—locally and globally.

 

JOURNAL

PLoS ONE

DOI

10.1371/journal.pone.0275973 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Survey

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Economic precarity, loneliness, and suicidal ideation during the COVID-19 pandemic

COI STATEMENT

SG reports serving as a consultant for Sharecare and Tivity Health.

Deep-space optical communication demonstration project forges ahead

New laser systems lay groundwork for solar-system-wide optical communication so that future space missions can transmit more data

Reports and Proceedings

OPTICA

 

IMAGE: PALOMAR OBSERVATORY’S HALE TELESCOPE WILL RECEIVE THE HIGH-RATE DATA DOWNLINK FROM THE DSOC FLIGHT TRANSCEIVER. view more 

CREDIT: CALTECH/PALOMAR OBSERVATORY

Researchers report new results from the NASA Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) technology demonstration project, which develops and tests new advanced laser sources for deep-space optical communication. The ability to perform free-space optical communication throughout the solar system would go beyond the capabilities of the radio communication systems used now and provide the bandwidth necessary for future space missions to transmit large amounts of data, including high-definition images and video.

The demonstration system consists of a flight laser transceiver, a ground laser transmitter and a ground laser receiver. The downlink transmitter has been installed on the Psyche spacecraft, which will travel to a unique metal asteroid also called Psyche, which orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter.

Malcolm. W. Wright, from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, will present the functional and environmental test results of the DSOC downlink flight laser transmitter assembly and ground uplink transmitter assembly at the Optica Laser Congress, 11 – 15 December 2022. 

Validating deep space optical communications will allow streaming back high-definition imagery during robotic and manned exploration of planetary bodies, utilizing resources comparable to state-of-art radio-frequency telecommunications.

Transmitting into deep space

Although free-space optical communications from space to ground have been demonstrated at distances as far away as the moon, extending such links to deep space ranges requires new types of laser transmitters. The downlink flight laser must have a high photon efficiency while supporting near kilowatt peak power. The uplink laser requires multi-kilowatt average powers with narrow linewidth, good beam quality and low modulation rates.

The flight laser transmitter assembly uses a 5 W average power Er-Yb co-doped fiber-based master oscillator power amplifier laser with discrete pulse widths from 0.5 to 8 ns in a polarized output beam at 1550 nm with an extinction ratio of more than 33 dB. The laser passed verification and environmental tests before being integrated into spacecraft. End-to-end testing of the flight laser transmitter with the ground receiver assembly also validated the optical link performance for a variety of pulse formats and verified the interface to the DSOC electronics assembly.

Launching a new approach

The ground uplink transmitter assembly can support optical links with up to 5.6 kW average power at 1064 nm. It includes ten kilowatt-class continuous wavelength fiber-based laser transmitters modified to support the modulation formats. A remotely placed chiller provides thermal management for the lasers and power supplies. The uplink laser will also provide a light beacon onto which the flight transceiver can lock.

“Using multiple individual laser sources that propagate through sub-apertures on the telescope’s primary mirror relieves the power requirement from a single source,” said Wright. “It also allows atmospheric turbulence mitigation and reduces the power density on the telescope mirrors.”

Now that spacecraft-level testing is complete, the Psyche spacecraft — with the flight laser transceiver aboard — will be integrated into a launch vehicle. The DSOC technology demonstration will begin shortly after launch and continue for one year as the spacecraft travels away from Earth and eventually performs a flyby of Mars.

Find more information about the NASA Deep Space Optical Communications technology demonstration project at https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/tdm/dsoc/index.html.

About the 2022 Optica Laser Congress and Exhibition

The Laser Congress provides a comprehensive view of the latest advances in solid-state laser development along with recent new applications. This year’s meeting will be presented 11 – 15 December 2022 in a hybrid meeting format to accommodate virtual (online) participation as well as in-person attendance at the Barcelona International Convention Center. Learn more.

About Optica

Optica (formerly OSA), Advancing Optics and Photonics Worldwide, is the society dedicated to promoting the generation, application, archiving and dissemination of knowledge in the field. Founded in 1916, it is the leading organization for scientists, engineers, business professionals, students and others interested in the science of light. Optica’s renowned publications, meetings, online resources and in-person activities fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate scientific, technical and educational achievement. Discover more at: Optica.org

Oxytocin drives development of neural connections in adult-born neurons

Peer-Reviewed Publication

BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE

Learning a new task, mastering a musical instrument or being able to adapt to the constantly changing environment are all possible thanks to the brain’s plasticity, or its ability to modify itself by rearranging existing neural networks and forming new ones to acquire new functional properties. This also helps neural circuits to remain healthy, robust and stable.

To better understand brain plasticity, a team of researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’ Hospital used mouse models to investigate how brain cells build connections with new neurons born in adult brains. Their findings, published in the journal Genes & Development, not only expand our understanding of brain plasticity but also open new possibilities for treating certain neurodevelopmental disorders and repairing injured circuits in the future.

“In this study, we wanted to identify new molecules that help new neurons build connections in the brain,” said corresponding author Dr. Benjamin R. Arenkiel, professor of molecular and human genetics and neuroscience at Baylor and the Duncan Neurological Research Institute at Texas Children’s. “We worked with the olfactory bulb, the part of the brain that is involved in the sense of smell. In mice, the olfactory bulb is a highly plastic sensory area and has a remarkable capacity to maintain plasticity into adulthood via continuous integration of adult-born neurons. We discovered that oxytocin, a peptide, or short protein, produced in the brain, drives events that contribute to neural circuit plasticity.”

The researchers discovered that the levels of oxytocin increase in the olfactory bulb, peaking at the time the new neurons incorporate themselves into neural networks. Using viral labeling, confocal microscopy and cell-type specific RNA sequencing, the team discovered that oxytocin triggers a signaling pathway – a series of molecular events inside cells – that promotes the maturation of synapses, that is, the connections of newly integrated adult-born neurons. When the researchers eliminated the oxytocin receptor, the cells had underdeveloped synapses and impaired function.

“Importantly, we found that synapse maturation occurs by regulating the morphological development of cells and the expression of a number of structural proteins,” said Arenkiel, a MacNair Scholar at Baylor.

“The most exciting aspect of this study is that our findings suggest that oxytocin drives development and synaptic integration of new neurons within the adult brain, directly contributing to adaptability and circuit plasticity,” said first author Brandon T. Pekarek, a graduate student – research assistant in the Arenkiel lab.

The findings, which are relevant to all mammals, including humans, open new possibilities to improve neurological conditions. “Oxytocin is normally present in our brain, so if we understand how to turn it on or off or mobilize it, we can help keep our circuit connections healthy by promoting the growth of underdeveloped connections or strengthening new ones,” Arenkiel said. “Our findings also suggest that oxytocin could promote the growth of new neurons to repair damaged tissue. Further studies are needed to explore these possibilities.”

Mikhail Kochukov, Brittney Lozzi, Timothy Wu, Patrick J. Hunt, Burak Tepe, Elizabeth Hanson Moss, Evelyne K. Tantry, Jessica L. Swanson, Sean W. Dooling, Mayuri Patel, Benjamin D.W. Belfort, Juan M. Romero, Suyang Bao and Matthew C. Hill contributed to this work. The authors are affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine and/or Texas Children’s Hospital.

This work was supported by the McNair Medical Institute, NINDS grant R01NS078294, an AHA grant and NICH grant U54HD083092.

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JOURNAL

Genes & Development

DOI

10.1101/gad.349930.122 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Oxytocin signaling is necessary for synaptic maturation of adult-born neurons

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

8-Dec-2022

FSU research links common sweetener with anxiety

Peer-Reviewed Publication

FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: PRADEEP BHIDE, THE JIM AND BETTY ANN RODGERS EMINENT SCHOLAR CHAIR OF DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROSCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES view more 

CREDIT: FLORIDA STAET UNIVERSITY

Florida State University College of Medicine researchers have linked aspartame, an artificial sweetener found in nearly 5,000 diet foods and drinks, to anxiety-like behavior in mice.

Along with producing anxiety in the mice who consumed aspartame, the effects extended up to two generations from the males exposed to the sweetener. The study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“What this study is showing is we need to look back at the environmental factors, because what we see today is not only what’s happening today, but what happened two generations ago and maybe even longer,” said co-author Pradeep Bhide, the Jim and Betty Ann Rodgers Eminent Scholar Chair of Developmental Neuroscience in the Department of Biomedical Sciences.

The study came about, in part, because of previous research from the Bhide Lab on the transgenerational effects of nicotine on mice. The research showed temporary, or epigenetic, changes in mice sperm cells. Unlike genetic changes (mutations), epigenetic changes are reversible and don’t change the DNA sequence; however, they can change how the body reads a DNA sequence.

“We were working on the effects of nicotine on the same type of model,” Bhide said. “The father smokes. What happened to the children?”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved aspartame as a sweetener in 1981. Today, nearly 5,000 metric tons are produced each year. When consumed, aspartame becomes aspartic acid, phenylalanine and methanol, all of which can have potent effects on the central nervous system.

Led by doctoral candidate Sara Jones, the study involved providing mice with drinking water containing aspartame at approximately 15% of the FDA-approved maximum daily human intake. The dosage, equivalent to six to eight 8-ounce cans of diet soda a day for humans, continued for 12 weeks in a study spanning four years.

Pronounced anxiety-like behavior was observed in the mice through a variety of maze tests across multiple generations descending from the aspartame-exposed males.

“It was such a robust anxiety-like trait that I don’t think any of us were anticipating we would see,” Jones said. “It was completely unexpected. Usually you see subtle changes.” 

When given diazepam, a drug used to treat anxiety disorder in humans, mice in all generations ceased to show anxiety-like behavior.

Researchers are planning an additional publication from this study focused on how aspartame affected memory. Future research will identify the molecular mechanisms that influence the transmission of aspartame’s effect across generations.

Other co-authors were Department of Biomedical Sciences faculty members Deirdre McCarthy, Cynthia Vied and Gregg Stanwood, and FSU Department of Psychology Professor Chris Schatschneider.

This research was supported by the Jim and Betty Ann Rodgers Chair Fund at Florida State University and by the Bryan Robinson Foundation.

Doctoral candidate Sara Jones, lead author of research examining the effects of aspartame, defending her her doctoral dissertation on the topic.

CREDIT

Mark Bauer/College of Medicine

JOURNAL

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI

10.1073/pnas.2213120119 

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Transgenerational transmission of aspartame-induced anxiety and changes in glutamate-GABA signaling and gene expression in the amygdala

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

2-Dec-2022

Warming seas’ negative impact on giant kelp starts in early life – Otago study

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO

Rising ocean temperatures are driving deterioration of kelp forests worldwide, but a University of Otago study hopes to help turn the tide and restore the valuable habitats.

Kelp forests are one of the most diverse and productive natural ecosystems on the planet, but in the past 50 to 100 years significant swaths have been lost and many of the remaining systems show a declining trajectory.

Researchers in Otago’s Coastal People: Southern Skies Centre of Research Excellence are undertaking a project into what is driving current declines of kōauau/giant kelp in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The kelp is found from the bottom of the North Island down to the subantarctic islands and is a key habitat for many culturally, recreationally, and commercially important species such as pāua and kōura (crayfish).

In a study, just published in international journal PLoS ONE, the group aimed to understand the effects of increasing temperature on the early developmental stages of the kelp.

Lead author Duong Le, PhD candidate in the Department of Marine Science, says, while increasing sea temperatures are known to be behind the decline, the particular mechanisms driving the loss are not well understood.

The researchers found higher temperatures stimulated greater spore release during the process of sporulation. However, spore settlement, germination, and germ-tube length were negatively impacted by increased temperature and significantly declined above 23.8˚C, 21.7˚C, and 19.8˚C, respectively.

“This study highlights the vulnerability of early life stages of giant kelp development and helps us better understand past changes and the future trajectory of kelp forest ecosystems in Aotearoa,” he says.

Co-author Dr Mathew Desmond, also of the Department of Marine Science, says this is the first study to measure the thermal threshold of spore and germling life stages of giant kelp.

“This information is key for making predictions of how such a valuable ecosystem engineer will perform in decades to come.

“This piece of work adds to our wider understanding of this species and aids our attempts to help protect and rebuild it.”

The researchers hope their work will motivate people to take an interest in the changes to natural environments going on around them and seek to understand what might be driving them, specifically issues around climate change and warming oceans.

*This ongoing research was funded through an MBIE Smart Ideas grant; an Otago University PhD scholarship to Duong Le; and by Otago’s Coastal People: Southern Skies Centre of Research Excellence.

 

Publication details:

Effect of temperature on sporulation and spore development of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera)

Duong M. Le, Mathew J. Desmond, Daniel W. Pritchard, Christopher D. Hepburn

PLoS ONE

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278268

 

For more information please contact:

Dr Matthew Desmond

Research Fellow

Department of Marine Science

University of Otago

Email: matthew.desmond@otago.ac.nz

 

Ellie Rowley

Communications Adviser

University of Otago

Email: ellie.rowley@otago.ac.nz

 

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JOURNAL

PLoS ONE

DOI

10.1371/journal.pone.0278268 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Effect of temperature on sporulation and spore development of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera)

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

8-Dec-2022

Electric car sales drive toward cleaner air, less mortality

Peer-Reviewed Publication

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

ITHACA, N.Y. - Electric cars – and their continued sales growth – are expected to have a greener, cleaner influence on air pollution and reduce human mortality in most, if not all, U.S. metropolitan areas, according to Cornell University research published in Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews (March 2023).

As the microscopic soot discharged from carbon-fueled cars continues to drop substantially, the research measured the potential of the large-scale use of passenger electric vehicles on air pollution and associated economic gains throughout the U.S. by 2050.

“While we enjoy the mobility that passenger vehicles provide, many of us don’t realize how bad those carbon emissions are, that come out from tailpipes, and how they’re impacting our health,” said senior author Oliver Gao, the Howard Simpson Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering at Cornell University.

Gao and his colleagues examined data from the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Emission Inventory, the Community Multi-scale Air Quality modeling system and an associated tool, which estimates the economic value of health impacts resulting from changes in air quality – specifically ground-level fine particles (2.5 micrometers and smaller, known as PM2.5.)

With fresher air, in 27 years greater Los Angeles will have 1,163 fewer premature deaths annually, corresponding to $12.61 billion in improved economic health benefits, according to the paper. Greater New York City could see 576 fewer such deaths annually and have $6.24 billion in associated economic gains and health benefits, while Chicago could have 276 fewer deaths and gain about $3 billion in financial well-being.

In California’s San Joaquin Valley, the scientists calculated there would be 260 fewer annual deaths and a $2.82 billion economic benefit, while Dallas-Fort Worth would see 186 fewer annual deaths and $2 billion in economic and health gains, to round out the top five areas.

Global sales of electric vehicles have grown steadily, the researchers said. While electric cars sold around the world was less than 1% of market share in 2016, the share grew to 2.2% by 2018. The market share globally doubled to about 4.1% in 2020 and then to 6.6% in 2021.

In the U.S., market share of electric passenger vehicles was 4.5% in 2021, but at the city sales level, according to the paper, passenger vehicle market shares were 22% in San Francisco, 11.9% in Los Angeles, 11.7% in Seattle and 3.4% in New York City.

With carbon-fueled passenger vehicles still all around now, tailpipe emissions surround us, said Gao, a faculty fellow at the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability. “It’s not like power plants, where the stacks are usually far away,” he said. “If we fully electrify transportation, we’re not only helping defeat global climate change, but we’re also helping the regional improvement of air quality.”

The benefits of electric vehicle adoption on air quality and public health are quite clear, it is also important to accelerate the implementation of this mitigation strategy, said the paper’s lead author Shuai Pan, a former Cornell post-doctoral researcher, now at Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology (NUIST), China.

“In addition to sound policies at the national level,” he said, “the successful implementation of zero-emission vehicle goals requires commitments and actions at the regional level.”

Electrifying transportation has comprehensive advantages. “We all want to win this battle against climate change and we all want to electrify transportation,” Gao said. “I hope this research can help local decision-makers to carry out real action and policy that improve the air and gain health rewards for regional residents in many ways.”

In addition to Pan and Gao, co-authors for “Impacts of the Large-scale Use of Passenger Electric Vehicles on Public Health in 30 U.S. Metropolitan Areas” are Wendi Yu, at NUIST; Lewis M. Fulton, University of California, Davis; Jia Jung, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; and Yunsoo Choi, University of Houston.

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JOURNAL

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

DOI

10.1016/j.rser.2022.113100 

ARTICLE TITLE

Impacts of the large-scale use of passenger electric vehicles on public health in 30 US. metropolitan areas

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

8-Dec-2022

Plant ecologist awarded NSF grant for restoring the culturally important Emory oak

Five-year multidisciplinary initiative focused on tree species critical to Western Apache tribal communities

Grant and Award Announcement

NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: SOUTHER, LEFT, WORKING IN AN EMORY OAK GROVE WITH STUDENTS MEGAN QUINN, BRANDEE JOE AND TIMBERLEE CASTILLO AND WITH ANNA JACKSON, A CITIZEN OF THE YAVAPAI APACHE NATION, CENTER. view more 

CREDIT: CREDIT: SIERRA BRYAN, KNAU

Assistant professor Sara Souther of Northern Arizona University’s School of Earth and Sustainability (SES) is principal investigator on a major new project focused on restoring a tree species important to the cultural heritage of tribal communities in the Southwest.

Acorns from the Emory oak tree are a critically important resource for the Western Apache Tribal Nations—including the Yavapai-Apache, Tonto Apache, San Carlos Apache and White Mountain Apache Tribal Nations in east and central Arizona—who use it both for food and for cultural and ceremonial purposes. Groves of Emory oak have been declining in health and yielding fewer acorns with each harvest for several decades due to loss of habitat, fire suppression, livestock grazing, groundwater reductions, species competition and climate change.

With $1.5 million in funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Souther will launch a five-year project starting in March 2023 entitled “DISES: Restoration of a southwestern cultural keystone species: Integrating socio‐ecological systems to predict resilience of traditional acorn harvest by western Apache communities.” Co-principal investigators on the multidisciplinary conservation project, representing SES and NAU’s School of Forestry as well as the departments of Biology, Sociology and Geography and Planning & Recreation, are associate professor Clare Aslan, Regents’ professor Peter Fulé, assistant professor Alark Saxena, associate teaching professor Amanda Stan, associate professor Diana Stuart, professor Andi (Andrea) Thode and associate professor Amy Whipple.

“I am extremely excited to have the resources to explore this amazing social-ecological system. For a long time, I’ve felt that wild harvest and traditional ecological practices and traditions have been viewed as niche issues within the world of conservation. It is thrilling to see this work elevated by the NSF,” Souther said.

“We are taking a holistic landscape-level approach to understand the threats to these woodlands. Emory oaks are a cultural keystone species for western Apache Tribes and the dominant oak in the Madrean oak woodlands, which cover around 80,000 km2 across the Southwest and US-Mexico borderlands,” she said. “Despite this, the Madrean oak system is understudied. In order to conserve Emory oak, we need to quickly learn a lot about this ecosystem, and in particular, we must understand what constrains population growth and viability. My work has always focused on understanding ecocultural interactions, supporting communities connected to these landscapes and conserving land and traditions. The DISES funding will support these same goals, providing the opportunity to rapidly learn about the Madrean oak woodlands as a coupled human and natural system.” 

This project builds on work done through the Emory Oak Collaborative Tribal Restoration Initiative  (EOCTRI), a collaborative partnership between NAU, the U.S. Forest Service and five different Apache tribes. Their goal is to restore and protect Emory oak stands to ensure the long-term persistence of Emory oak using tribal traditional ecological knowledge to guide goals and activities. Since 2018, the partners have worked together to identify and assess important Emory oak stands, complete clearances and begin implementing restoration and protection activities for several groves. With this new project, the team’s goals are to expand their knowledge of the Emory oak system, support the goals of EOCTRI—to conserve Emory oak trees and the traditional acorn harvest by Western Apache Tribes—and provide knowledge to the EOCTRI group according to the ethics of the Chi’Chil Advisory Committee. Watch this video to learn more about the EOCTRI’s efforts.

Souther’s project is also related to an initiative that was launched to better understand how to manage ecocultural resources on public lands—the Tribal Nations Botanical Research Collaborative (TNBRC), a U.S. Forest Service Citizen Science program in which volunteers collect information on traditionally used plants that have cultural, medicinal or economic values important to tribal communities. They record observations of these plants using the iNaturalist app on their cell phones. Scientists gather and analyze the data and use it to shape conservation and land management goals for increased sustainability.

Research related to Souther’s roots in rural Appalachia

“My work with the Emory oak builds on my past research on traditional use plant conservation in Appalachia,” Souther said. “I grew up in West Virginia, which has a rich heritage of harvesting wild plants for food, medicine and other essentials. It wasn’t until I went to Paraguay, as a Peace Corps volunteer, that I realized how much of this traditional knowledge had been lost in Appalachian culture. In Paraguay, small children knew the names and uses of all the plants growing in forests and fields nearby—which meant that most children had a working knowledge of hundreds of plants. Meanwhile, in West Virginia, most of this ecological knowledge was held by the elderly and was not actively passed down to youth. I could see our Appalachian culture disappearing, and for me, this ecocultural erosion was devastating. Harvest expeditions in Appalachia, whether to pick ramps (wild onions), blueberries or pawpaw (a fruit related to custard-apples), were part of the experience growing up in West Virginia and important for connecting with family and the land. More broadly, I feel that maintaining human connections to the land is key to human health and well-being and critical to inspire conservation of our wild spaces.”

Project designed to involve students from underrepresented groups

Souther is dedicated to outreach, mentorship and training to promote participation of underrepresented groups in STEM, and she is using this project as an opportunity to hire several students. Souther is also a co-PI with Amy Whipple on another project designed to increase diversity in STEM targeting post-baccalaureate training for underrepresented groups, principally Indigenous communities.

“Coming from rural Appalachia, I connect with students who may feel like outsiders in STEM fields. It is extremely important to me to support underrepresented groups as they navigate graduate school and academia. My commitment to increasing diversity in STEM fields is personal, since support from NSF and university faculty launched my career, and also practical, because I believe that the sciences will be strengthened by diverse opinions and thinkers.”

“We are recruiting four graduate students for this project and will be hiring undergraduate students as well to support field work in the summer. I encourage students to apply for these positions on my lab website.”

Souther said, “The broader impacts of this project will be to advance understanding and predictive modeling of stochastic drought events, which will likely drive ecological change in the Southwest and other arid regions. Integrating information from Native American tribal collaborators, we will contribute to diversity and inclusion in environmental resource management, ensuring that Indigenous perspectives and needs are incorporated into decision-making.”

She is also working on a two-year project funded through a $538,203 award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration entitled, “Projecting socio-ecological impacts of drought in southwestern ecosystems to prioritize restoration initiatives.” Stuart and Steven Chischilly from the Navajo Technical Institute are co-PIs on this project.

About Northern Arizona University

Founded in 1899, Northern Arizona University is a community-engaged, high-research university that delivers an exceptional student-centered experience to its nearly 28,000 students in Flagstaff, at 22 statewide campuses and online. Building on a 123-year history of distinctive excellence, NAU aims to be the nation’s preeminent engine of opportunity, vehicle of economic mobility and driver of social impact by delivering equitable postsecondary value in Arizona and beyond. NAU is committed to meeting talent with access and excellence through its impactful academic programs and enriching experiences, paving the way to a better future for the diverse students it serves and the communities they represent. 

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