scholarly journals A thermal trade-off between viral production and degradation drives phytoplankton-virus population dynamics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Demory ◽  
Joshua S. Weitz ◽  
Anne-Claire Baudoux ◽  
Suzanne Touzeau ◽  
Natalie Simon ◽  
...  

Marine viruses interact with their microbial hosts in dynamic environments shaped by variations in abiotic factors, including temperature. However, the impacts of temperature on viral infection of phytoplankton are not well understood. Here we coupled mathematical modeling with experimental datasets to explore the effect of temperature on three Micromonas-prasinovirus pairs. Our model shows the negative consequences of high temperatures on infection and suggests a temperature-dependent threshold between viral production and degradation. Modeling long-term dynamics in environments with different average temperatures revealed the potential for long-term host-virus coexistence, epidemic free, or habitat loss states. Hence, we generalized our model to global sea surface temperature of present and future seas and show that climate change may influence virus-host dynamics differently depending on the virus-host pair. Our study suggests that temperature-dependent changes in the infectivity of virus particles may lead to shifts in virus-host habitats in warmer oceans, analogous to projected changes in the habitats of macro- and micro-organisms.

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ligia J. Dominguez ◽  
Nicola Veronese ◽  
Mario Barbagallo

Hypertension is a complex condition in which various actors and mechanisms combine, resulting in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications that today represent the most frequent causes of mortality, morbidity, disability, and health expenses worldwide. In the last decades, there has been an exceptional amount of experimental, epidemiological, and clinical studies confirming a close relationship between magnesium deficit and high blood pressure. Multiple mechanisms may help to explain the bulk of evidence supporting a protective effect of magnesium against hypertension and its complications. Hypertension increases sharply with advancing age, hence older persons are those most affected by its negative consequences. They are also more frequently at risk of magnesium deficiency by multiple mechanisms, which may, at least in part, explain the higher frequency of hypertension and its long-term complications. The evidence for a favorable effect of magnesium on hypertension risk emphasizes the importance of broadly encouraging the intake of foods such as vegetables, nuts, whole cereals and legumes, optimal dietary sources of magnesium, avoiding processed food, which are very poor in magnesium and other fundamental nutrients, in order to prevent hypertension. In some cases, when diet is not enough to maintain an adequate magnesium status, magnesium supplementation may be of benefit and has been shown to be well tolerated.


Author(s):  
Pablo Villalobos Dintrans ◽  
Jorge Browne ◽  
Ignacio Madero-Cabib

Abstract Objective Provide a synthesis of the COVID-19 policies targeting older people in Chile, stressing their short- and long-term challenges. Method Critical analysis of the current legal and policy measures, based on national-level data and international experiences. Results Although several policies have been enacted to protect older people from COVID-19, these measures could have important unintended negative consequences in this group’s mental and physical health, as well as financial aspects. Discussion A wider perspective is needed to include a broader definition of health—considering financial scarcity, access to health services, mental health issues, and long-term care—in the policy responses to COVID-19 targeted to older people in Chile.


2021 ◽  
pp. 026540752110095
Author(s):  
Sandra Gloor ◽  
Stefanie Gonin-Spahni ◽  
Hansjörg Znoj ◽  
Pasqualina Perrig-Chiello

Separation and divorce are life events that might alter life satisfaction on the long term. Previous literature suggests a recovery of life satisfaction after marital dissolution for most individuals, simultaneously emphasizing considerable heterogeneity in the extent and timing of such adaptation. A new partnership seems to be a promising factor for a positive post-separation adjustment process. At the same time, the question arises whether people with beneficial characteristics, such as higher trait resilience, may have a double advantage by recovering faster and being more likely to find a new partner. However, little research has concurrently investigated the consequences of repartnering and favorable personal attributes on life satisfaction of middle- and older-aged people, especially not beyond the initial recovery period. Our data stem from a three-wave longitudinal questionnaire study including 199 participants after a separation, all single at the beginning of the study. Latent growth modeling was applied to investigate trajectories of life satisfaction, examining the role of a new intimate partnership, while controlling for trait resilience. Trait resilience represented a strong general predictor for inter-individual differences in the initial level of life satisfaction. However, an increase in life satisfaction over time was only observed in the group of participants who engaged in a new partnership. This increase occurred independently of preexisting differences in beneficial characteristics, such as high levels of trait resilience or life satisfaction. Thus, repartnering is associated with improvement of life satisfaction beyond the first adaptation phase after separation and is therefore important to prevent long-term negative consequences.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Candace L Kemp

Abstract The public health response to the current Coronavirus pandemic in long-term care communities, including assisted living, encompasses prohibiting visitors. This ban, which includes family members, has been criticized for being unfair, unhealthy, and unsafe. Against this backdrop, I examine the roles family play in residents’ daily lives and care routines. I argue that classifying family as “visitors” rather than essential care partners overlooks their critical contributions and stems from taken-for-granted assumption about gender, families, and care work, and I demonstrate why families are more than visitors. Policies that ban family visits also reflect a narrow understanding of health that focuses on mitigating infection risk, but neglects overall health and well-being. This policy further stems from a limited comprehension of care relations. Research shows that banning family visits has negative consequences for residents, but also families themselves, and direct care workers. I argue that identifying ways to better understand and support family involvement is essential and demonstrate the utility of the Convoys of Care model for guiding the reconceptualization of family in long-term care research, policy, and practice during and beyond the pandemic.


Author(s):  
Laura Barral-Fraga ◽  
María Teresa Barral ◽  
Keeley L. MacNeill ◽  
Diego Martiñá-Prieto ◽  
Soizic Morin ◽  
...  

This review is focused on the biogeochemistry of arsenic in freshwaters and, especially, on the key role that benthic microalgae and prokaryotic communities from biofilms play together in through speciation, distribution, and cycling. These microorganisms incorporate the dominant iAs (inorganic arsenic) form and may transform it to other arsenic forms through metabolic or detoxifying processes. These transformations have a big impact on the environmental behavior of arsenic because different chemical forms exhibit differences in mobility and toxicity. Moreover, exposure to toxicants may alter the physiology and structure of biofilms, leading to changes in ecosystem function and trophic relations. In this review we also explain how microorganisms (i.e., biofilms) can influence the effects of arsenic exposure on other key constituents of aquatic ecosystems such as fish. At the end, we present two real cases of fluvial systems with different origins of arsenic exposure (natural vs. anthropogenic) that have improved our comprehension of arsenic biogeochemistry and toxicity in freshwaters, the Pampean streams (Argentina) and the Anllóns River (Galicia, Spain). We finish with a briefly discussion of what we consider as future research needs on this topic. This work especially contributes to the general understanding of biofilms influencing arsenic biogeochemistry and highlights the strong impact of nutrient availability on arsenic toxicity for freshwater (micro) organisms.


2020 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Troy V. Mumford ◽  
M. Travis Maynard

Abstract Research on teams in organizations tends to focus on understanding the causes of team performance with a focus on how to enjoy the benefits of team success and avoid the negative consequences of team failure. This paper instead asks the question, ‘what are some of the negative consequences of team success?’ A review of the literature on teams is augmented with research from cognitive science, sociology, occupational psychology, and psychology to explore the potential negative long-term consequences of teamwork success. The general topics of groupthink, overconfidence bias, regression to the mean, role overload, and strategy calcification are reviewed while discussing the implications for future research streams and practical team management.


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