The relationship between dental status, food selection, nutrient intake, nutritional status, and body mass index in older people

This paper reviewed the findings from a national survey in Great Britain which assessed whether dental status affected older people's food selection, nutrient intake, and nutritional status. The survey analyzed national random samples of free-living and institution subjects for dental examination, interview, and four-day food diary as well as blood and urine tests In the free-living sample, intakes of non-starch polysaccharides, protein, calcium, non-heme iron, niacin, and vitamin C were significantly lower in edentulous as compared to dentate subjects. People with 21 or more teeth consumed more of most nutrients, particularly non-starch polysaccharides. This relationship in intake was not apparent in the hematological analysis. Plasma ascorbate and retinol were the only analytes significantly associated with dental status. Having 21 or more teeth increased the likelihood of having an acceptable body mass index (BMI). Thus, maintaining a natural and functional dentition defined as having more than twenty teeth into old age plays an important role in having a healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables, a satisfactory nutritional status, and an acceptable BMI

Determinants of male floating behaviour and floater reproduction in a threatened population of the hihi (Notiomystis cincta)

Floating males are usually thought of as nonbreeders. However, some floating individuals are able to reproduce through extra-pair copulations. Floater reproductive success can impact breeders’ sex ratio, reproductive variance, multiple paternity and inbreeding, particularly in small populations. Changes in reproductive variance alter the rate of genetic drift and loss of genetic diversity. Therefore, genetic management of threatened species requires an understanding of floater reproduction and determinants of floating behaviour to effectively conserve species. Here, we used a pedigreed, free-living population of the endangered New Zealand hihi (Notiomystis cincta) to assess variance in male reproductive success and test the genetic (inbreeding and heritability) and conditional (age and size) factors that influence floater behaviour and reproduction. Floater reproduction is common in this species. However, floater individuals have lower reproductive success and variance in reproductive success than territorial males (total and extra-pair fledglings), so their relative impact on the population's reproductive performance is low. Whether an individual becomes a floater, and if so then how successful they are, is determined mainly by individual age (young and old) and to lesser extents male size (small) and inbreeding level (inbred). Floating males have a small, but important role in population reproduction and persistence of threatened populations

Stress dependent thermal pressurization of a fluid-saturated rock

Temperature increase in saturated porous materials under undrained conditions leads to thermal pressurization of the pore fluid due to the discrepancy between the thermal expansion coefficients of the pore fluid and of the solid matrix. This increase in the pore fluid pressure induces a reduction of the effective mean stress and can lead to shear failure or hydraulic fracturing. The equations governing the phenomenon of thermal pressurization are presented and this phenomenon is studied experimentally for a saturated granular rock in an undrained heating test under constant isotropic stress. Careful analysis of the effect of mechanical and thermal deformation of the drainage and pressure measurement system is performed and a correction of the measured pore pressure is introduced. The test results are modelled using a non-linear thermo-poro-elastic constitutive model of the granular rock with emphasis on the stress-dependent character of the rock compressibility. The effects of stress and temperature on thermal pressurization observed in the tests are correctly reproduced by the model

A Comparison of Disease Risk Analysis Tools for Conservation Translocations

Conservation translocations are increasingly used to manage threatened species and restore ecosystems. Translocations increase the risk of disease outbreaks in the translocated and recipient populations. Qualitative disease risk analyses have been used as a means of assessing the magnitude of any effect of disease and the probability of the disease occurring associated with a translocation. Currently multiple alternative qualitative disease risk analysis packages are available to practitioners. Here we compare the ease of use, expertise required, transparency, and results from, three different qualitative disease risk analyses using a translocation of the endangered New Zealand passerine, the hihi (Notiomystis cincta), as a model. We show that the three methods use fundamentally different approaches to define hazards. Different methods are used to produce estimations of the risk from disease, and the estimations are different for the same hazards. Transparency of the process varies between methods from no referencing, or explanations of evidence to justify decisions, through to full documentation of resources, decisions and assumptions made. Evidence to support decisions on estimation of risk from disease is important, to enable knowledge acquired in the future, for example from translocation outcome, to be used to improve the risk estimation for future translocations. Information documenting each disease risk analysis differs along with variation in emphasis of the questions asked within each package. The expertise required to commence a disease risk analysis varies and an action flow chart tailored for the non-wildlife health specialist are included in one method but completion of the disease risk analysis requires wildlife health specialists with epidemiological and pathological knowledge in all three methods. We show that disease risk analysis package choice may play a greater role in the overall risk estimation of the effect of disease on animal populations involved in a translocation than might previously have been realised

Thermodynamic analysis of the Quantum Critical behavior of Ce-lattice compounds

A systematic analysis of low temperature magnetic phase diagrams of Ce compounds is performed in order to recognize the thermodynamic conditions to be fulfilled by those systems to reach a quantum critical regime and, alternatively, to identify other kinds of low temperature behaviors. Based on specific heat ($C_m$) and entropy ($S_m$) results, three different types of phase diagrams are recognized: i) with the entropy involved into the ordered phase ($S_{MO}$) decreasing proportionally to the ordering temperature ($T_{MO}$), ii) those showing a transference of degrees of freedom from the ordered phase to a non-magnetic component, with their $C_m(T_{MO})$ jump ($\Delta C_m$) vanishing at finite temperature, and iii) those ending in a critical point at finite temperature because their $\Delta C_m$ do not decrease with $T_{MO}$ producing an entropy accumulation at low temperature. Only those systems belonging to the first case, i.e. with $S_{MO}\to 0$ as $T_{MO}\to 0$, can be regarded as candidates for quantum critical behavior. Their magnetic phase boundaries deviate from the classical negative curvature below $T\approx 2.5$\,K, denouncing frequent misleading extrapolations down to T=0. Different characteristic concentrations are recognized and analyzed for Ce-ligand alloyed systems. Particularly, a pre-critical region is identified, where the nature of the magnetic transition undergoes significant modifications, with its $\partial C_m/\partial T$ discontinuity strongly affected by magnetic field and showing an increasing remnant entropy at $T\to 0$. Physical constraints arising from the third law at $T\to 0$ are discussed and recognized from experimental results

Using Qualitative Disease Risk Analysis for Herpetofauna Conservation Translocations Transgressing Ecological and Geographical Barriers

Through the exploration of disease risk analysis methods employed for four different UK herpetofauna translocations, we illustrate how disease hazards can be identified, and how the risk of disease can be analysed. Where ecological or geographical barriers between source and destination sites exist, parasite populations are likely to differ in identity or strain between the two sites, elevating the risk from disease and increasing the number and category of hazards requiring analysis. Simplification of the translocation pathway through the avoidance of these barriers reduces the risk from disease. The disease risk analysis tool is intended to aid conservation practitioners in decision making relating to disease hazards prior to implementation of a translocation

Diagnostic accuracy of Doppler ultrasound technique of the penile arteries in correlation to selective arteriography

In 63% of 265 patients with erectile dysfunction a relevant arterial inflow disturbance was found by Doppler ultrasound examination. Correlation between Doppler and arteriography in 58 patients showed an accuracy of 95% in detecting penile arteries and an accuracy of 91% in discovering a pathological arterial pattern (arterial anomaly or arteriosclerotic obstruction). In 15 patients the arterial inflow was measured additionally by Doppler ultrasound technique after intracavernosal injection of vasoactive drugs (IIVD) (7.5 mg papaverine and 0.25 mg phentolamine). This technique proved to be more reliable than in the flaccid state and markedly facilitated localization and assessment of pathological changes of the cavernosal arteries

A rocky planet transiting a nearby low-mass star

M-dwarf stars -- hydrogen-burning stars that are smaller than 60 per cent of the size of the Sun -- are the most common class of star in our Galaxy and outnumber Sun-like stars by a ratio of 12:1. Recent results have shown that M dwarfs host Earth-sized planets in great numbers: the average number of M-dwarf planets that are between 0.5 to 1.5 times the size of Earth is at least 1.4 per star. The nearest such planets known to transit their star are 39 parsecs away, too distant for detailed follow-up observations to measure the planetary masses or to study their atmospheres. Here we report observations of GJ 1132b, a planet with a size of 1.2 Earth radii that is transiting a small star 12 parsecs away. Our Doppler mass measurement of GJ 1132b yields a density consistent with an Earth-like bulk composition, similar to the compositions of the six known exoplanets with masses less than six times that of the Earth and precisely measured densities. Receiving 19 times more stellar radiation than the Earth, the planet is too hot to be habitable but is cool enough to support a substantial atmosphere, one that has probably been considerably depleted of hydrogen. Because the host star is nearby and only 21 per cent the radius of the Sun, existing and upcoming telescopes will be able to observe the composition and dynamics of the planetary atmosphere.Comment: Published in Nature on 12 November 2015, available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature15762. This is the authors' version of the manuscrip

GIVE: portable genome browsers for personal websites.

Growing popularity and diversity of genomic data demand portable and versatile genome browsers. Here, we present an open source programming library called GIVE that facilitates the creation of personalized genome browsers without requiring a system administrator. By inserting HTML tags, one can add to a personal webpage interactive visualization of multiple types of genomics data, including genome annotation, "linear" quantitative data, and genome interaction data. GIVE includes a graphical interface called HUG (HTML Universal Generator) that automatically generates HTML code for displaying user chosen data, which can be copy-pasted into user's personal website or saved and shared with collaborators. GIVE is available at: https://www.givengine.org/