Broadleaf forests are critical habitats for biodiversity and this biodiversity is in turn essential for their proper functioning. Mites (Acari) are a numerous and functionally essential component of these forests. We report the diversity of two important groups, Oribatida and Mesostigmata, in a broadleaf forest in Eastern Norway which is considered to be a biodiversity hotspot. Eighteen samples, each 500 cm3, were collected from diverse microhabitats (moss on ground, lichens on tree twigs lying on...

Objectives To identify serum protein biomarkers which might separate early inflammatory arthritis (EIA) patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) from those with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and may be used to support appropriate early intervention. Methods The serum proteome of patients with PsA and RA was interrogated using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) (n=64 patients), a multiplexed antibody assay (Luminex) for 48 proteins (n=64 patients) and an aptamer-based assay (SOMAscan) targeting 1,129 proteins (n=36 patients). Multiple reaction...

How gene expression diverges during adaptation might be strongly influenced by the geographic setting and timeframe over which species evolve. To contrast transcriptomic patterns of replicate trophic adaptations that evolved convergently during both allopatric and sympatric contexts, we conducted RNA-seq on the trophically important lower pharyngeal jaws of two sympatrically and four allopatrically diverged species pairs of cichlid fishes. We first show that all of these species pairs have convergently diverged along a crushing trophic...

The ubiquitous nature of microplastics in aquatic ecosystems may have serious implications for aquatic biota. While microplastic research in freshwater ecosystems is increasing, very few studies have assessed the physical presence of microplastics among top predators. The Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), a top predator of aquatic ecosystems, is one of the most widely distributed otter species and has a broad habitat niche. The opportunistic collection of otter spraints (i.e. feces) presents a valuable opportunity to...

The end-Permian mass extinction occurred alongside a large swathe of environmental changes that are often invoked as extinction mechanisms, even when a direct link is lacking. One way to elucidate the cause(s) of a mass extinction is to investigate extinction selectivity as it can reveal critical information on organismic traits as key determinants of extinction and survival. Here we show that machine learning algorithms, specifically gradient boosted decision trees, can be used to identify determinants...

Background: Literature on multi-disciplinary healthcare team interventions to improve quality and safety of care in acute hospital contexts tends to focus on evaluating the success of the intervention by assessing patient outcomes. In contrast, there is little focus on the team who delivered the intervention, how the team worked to deliver the intervention or the context in which it was delivered. In practice, there is a poor understanding of why some interventions work and are...

Background: Bovine TB (bTB), caused by infection with Mycobacterium bovis, is a major endemic disease affecting global cattle production. The key innate immune cell that first encounters the pathogen is the alveolar macrophage, previously shown to be substantially reprogrammed during intracellular infection by the pathogen. Here we use differential expression, and correlation- and interaction-based network approaches to analyse the host response to infection with M. bovis at the transcriptome level to identify core infection response...

Seminal plasma (SP) has been shown to modulate the female reproductive environment in mammalian species in which the ejaculate comes into direct contact with the endometrium, such as mice, pigs and horses. In contrast, cattle ejaculate in the vagina, and it is questionable whether the fluid portion reaches the uterus. A recent study from our group reported that mating to intact, but not vasectomised, bulls modifies the endometrium transcriptome. However, it is not clear whether...

1. Carrion is a frequent but overlooked source of nutrients to the soil. The decomposition of carrion is accelerated by invertebrate scavengers but the impact of the scavengers on below-ground biota and its functions is scarcely known. 2. We conducted a laboratory experiment to investigate the effects of the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides on the soil community of a temperate broadleaved forest. We assembled microcosms from soil collected from an oak woodland and treated them...

Comprising more than 1,400 species, bats possess adaptations unique among mammals including powered flight, unexpected longevity given small body size, and extraordinary immunity. Some of the molecular mechanisms underlying these unique adaptations includes DNA repair, metabolism and immunity. However, analyses have been limited to a few divergent lineages, reducing the scope of inferences on gene family evolution across the Order Chiroptera. We conducted an exhaustive comparative genomic study of 37 bat species encompassing a large...

In recent years excessive monetization of football and professionalism among the players has been argued to have affected the quality of the match in different ways. On the one hand, playing football has become a high-income profession and the players are highly motivated; on the other hand, stronger teams have higher incomes and therefore afford better players leading to an even stronger appearance in tournaments that can make the game more imbalanced and hence predictable....