Researchers reach milestone in measurement of airborne mercury

New testing technologies to support global effort to reduce health risks to people, wildlife

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, RENO

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IMAGE: THE NEW MEMBRANE SAMPLERS HAVE BEEN DEPLOYED FOR TESTING AT SEVERAL LOCATIONS ACROSS THE WORLD, INCLUDING HERE ON AMSTERDAM ISLAND IN THE INDIAN OCEAN. THE REMOTE ISLAND IS ROUGHLY EQUI-DISTANT, ABOUT 3,200 KILOMETERS, FROM MADAGASCAR, AUSTRALIA AND ANTARCTICA. view more 

CREDIT: PHOTO BY OLIVIER MAGAND.

JOURNAL

Science of The Total Environment

DOI

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159219 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Comparison and calibration of methods for ambient reactive mercury quantification

Students learn to use one of the atmospheric mercury measurement systems at the University’s Valley Road Greenhouse Complex, part of the Experiment Station. Left to right: Natalie Allen, Chris Ford, Ben Ingle.

CREDIT

Photo by Sarrah Dunham-Cheatham

Pakistan's health crisis: Inside & outside the flood zone

The Lancet: Pakistan faces double burden of communicable, non-communicable diseases, and persistent inequities

Peer-Reviewed Publication

INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH METRICS AND EVALUATION

SEATTLE, Wash. Jan. 18, 2023 – Before Pakistan plunged into a cataclysmic health emergency from its worst flooding disaster, the country was already confronting the burden of infectious diseases, the rising rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and widespread disparities. That’s according to the first and most comprehensive research of Pakistan’s health trends that drills down to the latest available data for all four provinces and three territories. The peer-reviewed paper, published today in The Lancet Global Health, is the work of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine, based on the Global Burden of Disease 2019 study, and part of a collaboration with Aga Khan University and the Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination.

Pakistan’s health challenges have been compounded by a number of previous natural disasters, including the historic devastation the country has been facing since June 2022 that’s affected more than 33 million people—half of them children. The country is  simultaneously challenged by domestic and global developments, including the COVID-19 pandemic, political turmoil, and the ever-evolving situation in the neighboring country Afghanistan.

“What these findings tell us is that Pakistan’s baseline before being hit by extreme flooding was already at some of the lowest levels around the globe,” said Dr. Ali Mokdad, Professor of Health Metrics Sciences at IHME. “The evidence couldn’t be any clearer. Pakistan is in critical need of a more equitable investment in its health system and policy interventions to save lives and improve people’s health.”

Researchers found the top five leading causes of premature mortality in 2019 were neonatal disorders, ischemic heart disease, stroke, diarrheal diseases, and lower respiratory infections. Child and maternal malnutrition, air pollution, high systolic blood pressure, dietary risks, and tobacco consumption were the leading risk factors for death and disability-adjusted life years in 2019.

While the current crisis has grown exponentially due to disease outbreaks that ensued in the flood-ravaged areas, the impact could last for years due to malnutrition alone. Pakistan’s rate of stunting among children was already high before the record rainfall deluged the country. In fact, 2019 estimates showed Balochistan had the highest prevalence of stunting and Punjab had the highest prevalence of wasting for children under 5.

“The country urgently needs a single national nutrition policy, especially as climate change and the increased severity of drought, flood, and pestilence threatens food security,” said Dr. Zainab Samad, Professor and Chair of the Department of Medicine at Aga Khan University. “Now that we’re armed with these latest findings that are stratified by location, age, and sex, we can share them with the Pakistani government’s task force that’s been working to address children’s health to reduce malnutrition.”

The new analysis also highlighted how the country has experienced a slowdown in the reduction in maternal and child mortality, high fertility rates, and persistent issues of gender disparities, which are expected to worsen as safety and security rapidly deteriorated following the floods.  

The various rates of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) by region suggest serious equity issues as well. Islamabad’s rate of DALYs was 22,226 per 100,000, but Balochistan’s rate was more than double at 49,620 per 100,000, and higher than the country’s rate of 42,059 per 100,000.

Pakistan also continues to face a large burden of infectious diseases that’s impacting the population unequally, including tuberculosis, hepatitis, typhoid, and paratyphoid.

Over the last 30 years, the top five causes of disease burden have shifted from communicable to NCDs. Cardiovascular disease, cancers, and diabetes are becoming major causes of death and disability. In fact, researchers forecast that these NCDs will be the three leading causes of death in the next 30 years.

“Our fragile health and economic systems are ill-equipped to handle the current and future NCD burden,” said Dr. Samad. “We have seen national action plans on NCDs, but implementation is largely lacking and much needed in this area.”

“Readjusting our response to evolved challenges, we must simultaneously tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, address infectious disease challenges, and curb rising rates of non-communicable diseases,” said Dr. Rana Muhammad Safdar, a field epidemiologist and the former Director General, Health, Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination. “Prioritizing these three areas will enhance Pakistan’s ability to make strides toward the achievement of universal health coverage and meet its Sustainable Development Goals.”

Pakistan’s health status is falling behind that of its neighbors and other countries with a similar Socio-demographic Index (SDI). The SDI is a composite average of the incomes per capita, average educational attainment, and fertility rates of all areas in the GBD study. The overall SDI of Pakistan increased during the 20-year span of the study, but the gap between the highest and lowest SDI units increased by 54%. The lowest SDI among Pakistan’s provinces and territories was higher than that of Afghanistan and lower than that of Nepal.

Closing the gap is an uphill battle due to many factors, including the lack of adequate health care. Although a top priority in Pakistan is universal health coverage, its Healthcare Access and Quality Index score was ranked 154th out of 195 countries. Looking at the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 188 countries and the chance of achieving them by 2030, Pakistan was ranked 164th. Even on the Human Capital Index, which scores life expectancy adjusted for education and health, Pakistan was ranked 116th among 195 countries.

Life expectancy (LE) in Pakistan has increased from 61.1 years in 1990 to 65.9 in 2019 due to the reduction in communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases. That’s still 7.6 years lower than the global average life expectancy and lower than that of five of its six peer countries. When examining the figures by age, sex, and geographical location, inequalities were notable. Life expectancy increased 8% in women and 7% in men. Among the regions, Islamabad has had the highest life expectancy during the 20-year span of the study. The lowest gains in LE were in the two western provinces, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which were hit hard by the recent floods.

JOURNALISTS CAN ACCESS THE PAPER, GRAPHICS AND RECORDED AUTHOR INTERVIEWS UNDER STRICT EMBARGO THAT LIFTS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18 AT 23:30 UK TIME 6:30 PM ET.

FOR INTERVIEWS, JOURNALISTS CAN CONTACT: media@healthdata.org

 

About the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) is an independent global health research organization at the University of Washington that provides rigorous and comparable measurement of the world’s most important health problems and evaluates the strategies used to address them. IHME is committed to transparency and makes this information widely available so that policymakers have the evidence they need to make informed decisions on allocating resources to improve population health.

About the Global Burden of Disease study

The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study is the largest and most comprehensive effort to quantify health loss across places and over time. It draws on the work of more than 8,000 collaborators from 157 countries and territories. IHME coordinates the study. The GBD 2019 study was published in October 2020 and includes more than 38 billion estimates of 369 diseases and injuries and 87 risk factors in 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 20

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JOURNAL

The Lancet Global Health

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Systematic review

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Pakistan's health crisis: Inside & outside the flood zone

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

18-Jan-2023

Kelp farms could help reduce coastal marine pollution

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS

 

IMAGE: SUGAR KELP GROWS AT AN EXPERIMENTAL FARM NEAR JUNEAU. view more 

CREDIT: PHOTO BY SCHERY UMANZOR

The water-filtering abilities of farmed kelp could help reduce marine pollution in coastal areas, according to a new University of Alaska Fairbanks-led study.

The paper, published in the January issue of Aquaculture Journal, analyzed carbon and nitrogen levels at two mixed-species kelp farms in southcentral and southeast Alaska during the 2020-21 growing season. Tissue and seawater samples showed that seaweed species may have different capabilities to remove nutrients from their surroundings.

“Some seaweeds are literally like sponges — they suck and suck and never saturate,” said Schery Umanzor, an assistant professor at UAF’s College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences and the lead author of the study. 

“Although carbon and carbon sequestration by kelp received most of the attention, kelp is actually much better at mitigating excessive amounts of nitrogen than carbon,” Umanzor said. “I think that’s a story that’s really underlooked.”

Nitrogen pollution is caused in coastal areas by factors such as urban sewage, domestic water runoff or fisheries waste disposal. It can lead to a variety of potential threats in marine environments, including toxic algae blooms, higher bacterial activity and depleted oxygen levels. Kelp grown in polluted waters shouldn’t be used for food but could still be a promising tool for cleaning such areas.

Kelp farming is an emerging industry in Alaska, touted to improve food security and create new job opportunities. It’s also been considered as a global-scale method for storing carbon, which could be a way to reduce levels of atmospheric carbon that contribute to climate change.

Analysis of kelp tissue samples from the farms determined that ribbon kelp was more effective than sugar kelp at absorbing both nitrogen and carbon, although that difference was somewhat offset by the higher density of farmed sugar kelp forests.

Umanzor cautioned that the study was limited to two sites during a single growing season. She is currently processing a larger collection of samples collected from six Alaska kelp farms for the subsequent season.

“Maybe it’s a function of species, maybe it’s the site, maybe it’s the type of carbon and nitrogen out there,” Umanzor said. “There’s a lot to know in a follow-up study.”

 

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JOURNAL

Aquaculture Journal

ARTICLE TITLE

Nitrogen and carbon removal capacity by farmed kelp Alaria marginata and Saccharina latissima varies by species

Microalgae could be the future of sustainable superfood in a rapidly changing world, study finds

Researchers outline the environmental and nutritional advantages of these aquatic plants, as well as the technical and economic challenges for scaling production

Peer-Reviewed Publication

FRONTIERS

Algae. It’s what’s for dinner.

This variation on the iconic US advertising slogan from the beef industry may sound funny, but it’s no joke that the current agriculture system is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions and environmental pollution. In turn, the climate crisis and ecosystem degradation threaten long-term food security for billions of people around the world.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), believe algae could be a new kind of superfood thanks to its high protein and nutrition content. They make their case in a paper recently published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition that examines the current scientific literature on microalgae, a catch-all term for the thousands of microscopic algal species and other photosynthetic organisms like cyanobacteria found in various aquatic environments.

A more efficient food source

The review highlights the current technologies for commercially developing and growing microalgae, as well as the scientific and economic challenges to scaling production. While long studied as a source of biofuel thanks to their high lipid or fat content, algae are also attracting interest from researchers because of their potential to be a more efficient food source.

“Many of us have known the potential of algae for food for years, and have been working on it as a food source, but now, with climate change, deforestation, and a population of eight billion people, most everyone realizes that the world simply has to become more efficient in protein production,” said co-author Dr Stephen Mayfield, a professor of biology at UCSD and director of the California Center for Algae Biotechnology.

For instance, a 2014 study cited in the current paper by Mayfield and his team found that algae can produce 167 times more useful biomass than corn annually while using the same amount of land. Other models predict that existing algae strains could potentially replace 25% of European protein consumption and 50% of the total vegetable oil consumption when grown on available land that is not currently used for traditional crops.

“The biggest advantage is the protein production per acre,” Mayfield noted. “Algae simply dwarf the current gold standard of soybean by at least 10 times, maybe 20 times, more production per acre.”

In addition, some algal species can be grown in brackish or salty water – and, in at least one case, wastewater from a dairy operation – meaning freshwater can be reserved for other needs. Nutritionally, many algal species are rich in vitamins, minerals and especially macronutrients essential to the human diet, such as amino acids and omega-3 fatty acids.

Creating the best algal strain for humans

Challenges still remain, starting with finding or developing algal strains that check all of the boxes: high biomass yields, high protein content, full nutrition profile, and the most efficient growing conditions in terms of land use, water requirements, and nutrient inputs.

In the paper, the UCSD authors describe the various scientific tools available to produce the most desirable traits for a commercially viable algal product. For example, one previously published experiment described enhancing astaxanthin, an antioxidant pigment that has been shown to have various health benefits, through targeted genetic mutations. Another mutagenic experiment was able to increase both biomass yield and protein content for a different algal strain, particularly when grown in a simple, low-cost sweet sorghum juice.

Mayfield said the most likely approaches for commercial development of a superior algal crop would involve a combination of traditional breeding with molecular engineering. “This is the way modern crops are being developed, so this is the way algae will be developed,” he said. “They are both plants – one terrestrial and one aquatic.”

Nutrition and yield aren’t the only considerations. Some tweaking of color, taste, and decreasing that characteristic fishy smell may be needed to convert some consumers. Other experiments have already demonstrated the ability to modify these organoleptic traits while boosting protein content in new strains of algae.

The need to feed a growing population

Indeed, the biggest challenge for commercial development, Mayfield added, isn’t necessarily scientific, technical or aesthetic. It’s the ability to scale production globally.

“You just can’t know all the challenges of going to world scale, until you do,” he said, “But the world has done this [with] smartphones, computers, photovoltaic panels, and electric cars – all of these had challenges, and we overcame them to take these ‘new’ technologies to world scale, so we know we can do it with algae.”

Mayfield said the need for alternative food systems has never been more urgent, as the human population swells, pushing resources and systems to the breaking point. “The only way to avoid a really bleak future is to start transitioning now to a much more sustainable future, and algae as food is one of those transitions that we need to make,” he said.

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JOURNAL

Frontiers in Nutrition

DOI

10.3389/fnut.2022.1029841 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Literature review

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Developing Algae as a Sustainable Food Source

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

19-Jan-2023

COI STATEMENT

The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: S.P.M. is a founder of, and holds an equity position in, Algenesis Inc.

COVID-19 patients retain elevated risk of death for at least 18 months after infection

Peer-Reviewed Publication

EUROPEAN SOCIETY OF CARDIOLOGY

Sophia Antipolis, 19 January 2023:  COVID-19 is associated with higher risks of cardiovascular disease and death in the short- and long-term, according to a study in nearly 160,000 participants published today in Cardiovascular Research, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1 Compared to uninfected individuals, the likelihood of COVID-19 patients dying was up to 81 times higher in the first three weeks of infection and remained five times higher up to 18 months later.

“COVID-19 patients were more likely to develop numerous cardiovascular conditions compared to uninfected participants, which may have contributed to their higher risks of death,” said study author Professor Ian C.K. Wong of the University of Hong Kong, China. “The findings indicate that patients with COVID-19 should be monitored for at least a year after recovering from the acute illness to diagnose cardiovascular complications of the infection, which form part of long COVID.”

This study compared the occurrence of cardiovascular conditions and death in infected versus uninfected individuals recruited before December 2020, when no vaccines were available in the UK. More than 7,500 patients with COVID-19 infection diagnosed from 16 March 2020 to 30 November 2020 were identified from UK Biobank.2 Each patient was matched with up to 10 individuals without COVID-19 during the study period (16 March 2020 to the end of follow-up on 31 August 2021) and a historical cohort before the pandemic (16 March 2018 to 30 November 2018). Each uninfected group had more than 70,000 participants who were similar to the COVID-19 group for age, sex, smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular and other health conditions, body mass index, ethnicity, and deprivation. In all three groups, the average age was 66 years and there were nearly equal numbers of women and men.

Professor Wong explained: “The historical control cohort was included to rule out the effect of routine healthcare services being reduced or cancelled during the pandemic, which led to worsening health and increased mortality even in uninfected people.”

Data were obtained from medical and death records for outcomes including major cardiovascular disease (a composite of heart failure, stroke and coronary heart disease); numerous cardiovascular conditions such as stroke, atrial fibrillation and myocardial infarction; death from cardiovascular disease; and all-cause death. Associations were evaluated for the acute phase (within 21 days of COVID-19 diagnosis) and the post-acute phase (starting at 22 days after diagnosis and continuing up to 18 months). Participants with a history of a particular outcome were excluded from that analysis.

Compared with the two uninfected cohorts, patients with COVID-19 were approximately four times more likely to develop major cardiovascular disease in the acute phase and 40% more likely in the post-acute phase. Compared to uninfected individuals, the risk of death in COVID-19 patients was up to 81-fold higher in the acute phase and five-fold higher in the post-acute phase. Patients with severe COVID-19 were more likely to develop major cardiovascular disease or die than non-severe cases.

COVID-19 patients had a greater likelihood of several cardiovascular conditions compared with uninfected participants in both the short- and long-term including myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease, heart failure, and deep vein thrombosis. Risks of some cardiovascular conditions – for example stroke and atrial fibrillation – were elevated in COVID-19 patients in the short-term but then returned to normal levels.

Professor Wong said: “This study was conducted during the first wave of the pandemic, and future research should evaluate subsequent outbreaks. Previous research has indicated that COVID-19 vaccination may prevent complications, and further studies are needed to investigate its effectiveness in reducing the risks of cardiovascular disease and death after COVID-19 infection in patients with COVID-19 vaccination compared to those without vaccination.”

ESC spokesperson Professor Héctor Bueno of the National Centre for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC), Madrid, Spain said: “COVID-19 has had a huge impact on patients with cardiovascular disease, who were less likely to receive optimal care during the pandemic and more likely to die from the infection. This study shows that COVID-19 also increases the risk of having cardiovascular complications and dying in the first weeks after the infection and remains high for months, suggesting that specific cardiovascular monitoring may be appropriate in these patients.”

ENDS

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JOURNAL

Cardiovascular Research

DOI

10.1093/cvr/cvac195 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Association of COVID-19 with short- and long-term risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality: A prospective cohort in UK Biobank

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

19-Jan-2023

Columbia Mailman School of Public Health teams up with American University of Beirut to study effect of late life learning on cognition and aging

Grant and Award Announcement

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY'S MAILMAN SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH

January 19, 2023-- The National Health Institute (NIH) has awarded Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and The American University of Beirut (AUB) Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine a five-year grant for the Late Life Learning (LLL), Cognition and Aging (3LC) study.  Led by an interdisciplinary team at both institutions, 3LC is an innovative research project that aims to uncover the potential role of promoting healthier aging and delaying cognitive decline among older adults in Lebanon.

“The study, which will initially run over the next five years, aims to build research and infrastructure capacities to delineate opportunities for dementia prevention in Lebanon and the region,” stated Dr. Adina Zeki Al Hazzouri, Multiple Principal Investigator (PI) at Columbia Mailman School of Public Health.

“The study offers a unique platform to address exciting, innovative and timely research questions. The ultimate aim is to improve our understanding of the determinants of active and healthy aging, and inform future investments and the design of LLL programs, providing insights for other populations in similarly low-resource settings worldwide.” Zeki Al Hazzouri is assistant professor in Columbia’s Department of Epidemiology and the Columbia Butler Aging Center.

“Lebanon has the largest proportion of older adults in the Arab region, and Lebanese older adults are exposed to a host of life course psychosocial adversities, including the recent economic meltdown, which makes it a particularly important and relevant setting to undertake such a study,” according to Dr. Martine Elbejjani, Multiple-PI from the Faculty of Medicine at AUB.

“At the same time, older people of today are generally healthier and living longer than their parents and many aspire to remain active in their old age”, says Dr. Abla Mehio Sibai, co-founding director of the University for Seniors (UfS) program at AUB and Multiple-PI on the 3LC study. Opportunities that provide enriching intellectual and social experiences are rare in the region. “This project will capitalize on the unique and well-established LLL program, the AUB UfS, to conduct a formal program evaluation and evaluate the influence of informal education in older age on cognitive, physical and social health”.

Other Columbia Investigators [ZAHA1] involved with the project include Drs. Jennifer Manly from Neurology, Sebastian Calonico from Health Policy and Management, and Linda Valeri from Biostatistics.

Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Founded in 1922, the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health pursues an agenda of research, education, and service to address the critical and complex public health issues affecting New Yorkers, the nation and the world. The Columbia Mailman School is the fourth largest recipient of NIH grants among schools of public health. Its nearly 300 multi-disciplinary faculty members work in more than 100 countries around the world, addressing such issues as preventing infectious and chronic diseases, environmental health, maternal and child health, health policy, climate change and health, and public health preparedness. It is a leader in public health education with more than 1,300 graduate students from 55 nations pursuing a variety of master’s and doctoral degree programs. The Columbia Mailman School is also home to numerous world-renowned research centers, including ICAP and the Center for Infection and Immunity. For more information, please visit www.mailman.columbia.edu.

Researchers create a new 3D extra-large pore zeolite that opens a new path to the decontamination of water and gas

A team of scientists with the participation of the CSIC develops an extra-large pore silica zeolite from a silicate chain

Peer-Reviewed Publication

SPANISH NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL (CSIC)

 

IMAGE: IMAGE OF THE STRUCTURE OF ZEO-3, A NEW EXTRA-LARGE PORE SILICA ZEOLITE. / ICMM-CSIC view more 

CREDIT: ICMM-CSIC

An international team of researchers with the participation of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) has created the most porous stable zeolite known to date, a new pure silica zeolite called ZEO-3. This zeolite was formed by an unprecedented topotactic condensation of a 1D silicate chain to a 3D zeolite. The process is topotactic because the structure of the chain is not altered. It can be applied to remove and recover volatile organic compounds from a gas stream that may even contain water. The discovery, to which scientists from the Institute of Materials Sciences of Madrid (ICMM-CSIC) and the Institute of Nanoscience and Materials of Aragon (INMA-CSIC-UNIZAR) have contributed, is published in the journal Science.

Zeolites are microporous silicates that find an ample variety of applications as catalysts, adsorbents, and cation exchangers. Stable silica-based zeolites with increased porosity are in demand to allow adsorption and processing of large molecules, "but challenge our synthetic ability", explains Miguel Camblor, researcher at ICMM and one of the correspondening authors of the research.

As the zeolites pores have are the size of small molecules, there is a limitation on the size of molecules you can process. That is why Zeolites with larger pores "have always been sought" and, specially, those with inpores along 3 dimensions: "because when you have a pore in only one direction, even if it is large, it is easy for it to be blocked, but if you have them in all dimensions, it's difficult,” Camblor points out.

After more than 80 years of extensive international research in this field, this team has created the most porous stable zeolite known so far. "Until now, the zeolites with extra-large pores were not stable, as they were made by germanium instead of siliconm", he says. Previous stable zeolites could reach up to 7 angstroms (1 angstrom is a hundred-millionth of a centimetre).

Last year, this team of researchers published another article in Science about a new zeolite with aluminum and large pores (ZEO-1). Now, the new zeolite has a composition of pure silica. “In both zeolites, ZEO-1 and ZEO-3, there are pores that reach more than 10 angstroms,” says Camblor.

The peculiarities of ZEO-3

This new zeolite has two peculiarities: extra-large pores in all three dimensions and it is formed though the synthesisby calcination of a one-dimensional chain silicate in a topotactic condensation (what means it was made without changes in this chain).

"This had never been seen before," congratules Camblor. "Two-dimensional to three-dimensional topotactic condensations were known, that is, a thing that was lamellar and that by a similar mechanism condensed to give a zeolite, but not from one-dimensional to three-dimensional," he adds.

After the creation of this zeolite the team, with researchers also from Sweden, China and USA, started to experiment its properties: "Since this is a material that is pure silica, it does not have a catalytic capacity, but it has a capacity to absorb very large things. Big organic stuff," says Camblor.

"This zeolite can be applied to remove and recover volatile organic compounds from a gas stream that may even contain water", he explains. "In a site where harmful volatile organic materials are being produced, you can decontaminate and not just remove it but recover itthe contaminant", Camblor ilustrates. With further research this zeolite could be also useful at catalysis and in drug delivery.

Miguel Camblor, ICMM-CSIC researcher, and a representation of the structure of ZEO-3. / ICMM-CSIC

CREDIT

ICMM-CSIC

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JOURNAL

Science

DOI

10.1126/science.ade1771 

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

A 3D Extra-Large Pore Zeolite Enabled by 1D-to-3D Topotactic Condensation of a Chain Silicate

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

19-Jan-2023

Squirrels that gamble win big when it comes to evolutionary fitness

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

Photos

Imagine overhearing the Powerball lottery winning numbers, but you didn't know when those numbers would be called—just that at some point in the next 10 years or so, they would be. Despite the financial cost of playing those numbers daily for that period, the payoff is big enough to make it worthwhile. 

Animals that live in highly variable environments play a similar lottery when it comes to their Darwinian fitness, or how well they are able to pass on their genes. In a new study led by the University of Michigan, scientists found that red squirrels that gambled at the game of reproduction outperformed their counterparts, even if it cost them in the short term.

Natural selection favors female squirrels that have large litters in years when food is abundant because they contribute lots of babies to the gene pool, said Lauren Petrullo, lead author and National Science Foundation postdoctoral research fellow in biopsychology at the University of Michigan. 

"We were surprised to find that some females have large litters in years when there won't be enough food for their babies to survive the winter," she said. "Because it's biologically expensive to produce offspring, we wanted to know why these females make what appears to be an error in their reproductive strategy."

The red squirrels studied live in the Canadian Yukon and experience a "mast year," or boom in their main food source—seeds from the cones of white spruce trees—once every four to seven years. Squirrels forecast the large mast crop of food before it occurs and increase litter sizes in the months prior, ensuring better future survival for their babies and better fitness for themselves. 

"There is a constant tug-of-war between the trees and the squirrels at our study site,"  Petrullo said, "with each player trying to deceive the other for its own fitness gain."

Petrullo and Ben Dantzer, U-M associate professor of psychology and of ecology and evolutionary biology, used data collected by the Kluane Red Squirrel Project, a collaborative, 34-year-old field study involving U-M, the University of Colorado, the University of Alberta and the University of Saskatchewan.  

"Each year, we collect data on how many babies squirrels produce and how many spruce cones the squirrels eat," Dantzer said. 

The scientists quantified the reproduction of female squirrels during both food booms and busts, discovering differences in their fitness whether they gambled with their reproductive strategy or not. While some squirrels played it safe by keeping litter sizes small each year, those that took a "pie in the sky" approach by having large litters even when food was scarce enjoyed greater lifetime fitness if they got to experience a mast year, the research showed.

Unlike the Powerball example, though, squirrels aren't guaranteed to eventually win. 

"In some ways, this strategy of gambling with litter sizes is like playing with fire," Petrullo said. "Because the average squirrel lifespan is 3.5 years and masts only happen every four to seven, a female could potentially be sabotaging her fitness by having too many babies in low-food years, hoping for a mast when she may die before she ever gets to experience a mast at all. This could be pretty costly."

Alternatively, for squirrels, the cost of not gambling at all in the game of reproduction can be insurmountable if they end up missing their shot at the jackpot. 

"It's essentially impossible for a female to recuperate the fitness costs of not ramping up reproduction in a mast year, so the stakes are extremely high," Petrullo said. 

Females that increased litter sizes in low-food years did take a short-term hit to their fitness. But they were more likely to increase litter sizes if and when they experienced a mast, taking home the ultimate prize of greater lifetime reproductive success, she said.

The squirrels' best bet, according to the researchers, is to take their chances and suffer short-term fitness costs in order to avoid the unmatched cost of missing the fitness jackpot completely.

"Determining the relative costs of different types of errors is key to understanding why animals make what look to us like mistakes," Petrullo said. 

Scientists are still unsure exactly how the squirrels are able to forecast future food production. The animals may be eating parts of the spruce trees that affect their physiology and alter the number of babies they produce, Dantzer said.

"This is exciting because it suggests that squirrels are eavesdropping on the trees, but we still have much more to do to solve this puzzle," he said.

Because many animals use cues about things like food in their environment to make reproductive decisions, and the reliability of these cues is declining due to global climate change, scientists also wonder how the costs of these types of errors will alter what is the best reproductive strategy. 

"If the predictability of a food boom is reduced and squirrels can no longer forecast the future, this could impact the number of squirrels out there in the Boreal forest," Dantzer said. "This could be problematic given that squirrels are prey for many predators."

The research, which appears in Science, was funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. 

The study's co-authors are Stan Boutin, University of Alberta; Andrew McAdam, University of Colorado; and Jeff Lane, University of Saskatchewan.

Study: "Phenotype-environment mismatch errors enhance lifetime fitness in wild red squirrels" (available after embargo lifts)

JOURNAL

Science

Review highlights 10 years of CRISPR genome editing technology

Peer-Reviewed Publication

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE (AAAS)

In the decade since the publication of CRISPR-Cas9 as a genome editing technology, the CRISPR toolbox and its applications have profoundly changed biological research, enabling advances through applications in plants, animals, and humans. In a Review, Joy Wang and Jennifer Doudna highlight 10 years of CRISPR genome editing, discussing the technique’s important advances, current limitations, and promising potential for the future. Leveraging the core component of the bacterial immune system, the development of CRISPR genome editing tools, including CRISPR-Cas9, has allowed researchers to precisely edit and rewrite the genetic code in almost any organism. Not only have the applications of CRISPR technology laid the foundation for clinical trials of therapies for rare and intractable diseases, including sickle cell disease, they have also enabled agricultural advances like the development of a more nutritious CRISPR-edited tomato. Wang and Doudna review how the last 10 years of CRISPR technology have focused largely on building the platforms for CRISPR-induced gene knockouts, creating knockout mice and other animal models, genetic screening, and multiplex genome-editing. These uses have led to success stories in various fields. However, challenges remain. Efforts to improve editing accuracy and precision and the targeted delivery of CRISPR editors are ongoing. What’s more, debates concerning cost, regulation, and access, which include the ethical and societal challenges of the technology, remain to be fully addressed. “In the decade ahead, genome editing research and applications will continue to accelerate and will increasingly intersect with technologies including machine learning, live cell imaging, and faster, cheaper DNA sequencing,” write the authors. “Just as the past decade has focused on CRISPR platforms, the decade ahead will increasingly apply those platforms for real-world impacts.”

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JOURNAL

Science

DOI

10.1126/science.add8643 

ARTICLE TITLE

CRISPR technology turns ten: a decade of genome editing is only the beginning

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

20-Jan-2023