Sustainable Streetscapes: Design Approaches and Examples of Viennese Practice

Streets are ubiquitous and cater to various functions in a city. However, today most streets are unilaterally used and designed likewise. Car-centred spatial distribution is currently being questioned in the course of urban densification and in light of climate and ecological challenges. The presented work focuses on a multi-layered transformation of streetscapes towards a multi-purpose social and ecological space, which goes beyond a mere redistribution of space and functions. This paper draws from the results of an interdisciplinary research project headed by the Institute of Landscape Architecture (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna). The Viennese situation is aligned with international trends. The research includes comparative analysis of streetscapes in Vienna and comparable cities, literature reviews, collaborative workshops and qualitative interviews. As a result, progressive layout specifications and quality aspects for future streets are proposed and presented in extracts. Furthermore, the goal of green space social equity is linked. The paper concludes by arguing for comprehensive consideration and redesign of streetscapes as one promising puzzle to counteract the evident challenges of climate change in urban settings. Its range reaches from small scale microclimatic improvements up to citywide provision of accessible, useable, ecologically sound and sustainable public space with new standards for streets as potential backbone.

Chemogenetic approaches to dissect the role of H2O2 in redox-dependent pathways using genetically encoded biosensors

Chemogenetic tools are recombinant enzymes that can be targeted to specific organelles and tissues. The provision or removal of the enzyme substrate permits control of its biochemical activities. Yeast-derived enzyme D-amino acid oxidase (DAAO) represents the first of its kind for a substrate-based chemogenetic approach to modulate H2O2 concentrations within cells. Combining these powerful enzymes with multiparametric imaging methods exploiting genetically encoded biosensors has opened new lines of investigations in life sciences. In recent years, the chemogenetic DAAO approach has proven beneficial to establish a new role for (patho)physiological oxidative stress on redox-dependent signaling and metabolic pathways in cultured cells and animal model systems. This mini-review covers established or emerging methods and assesses newer approaches exploiting chemogenetic tools combined with genetically encoded biosensors.

The characteristics of early-stage research into human genes are substantially different from subsequent research

Throughout the last 2 decades, several scholars observed that present day research into human genes rarely turns toward genes that had not already been extensively investigated in the past. Guided by hypotheses derived from studies of science and innovation, we present here a literature-wide data-driven meta-analysis to identify the specific scientific and organizational contexts that coincided with early-stage research into human genes throughout the past half century. We demonstrate that early-stage research into human genes differs in team size, citation impact, funding mechanisms, and publication outlet, but that generalized insights derived from studies of science and innovation only partially apply to early-stage research into human genes. Further, we demonstrate that, presently, genome biology accounts for most of the initial early-stage research, while subsequent early-stage research can engage other life sciences fields. We therefore anticipate that the specificity of our findings will enable scientists and policymakers to better promote early-stage research into human genes and increase overall innovation within the life sciences.

A Guide to Preprinting for Early Career Researchers

The use of preprints, research manuscripts shared publicly before the traditional peer review process, is becoming more common in the life sciences. Early career researchers (ECRs) benefit from posting preprints as they are shareable, citable, and prove productivity. However, the decision to preprint a manuscript involves a discussion among all co-authors, and ECRs are often not the decision-makers. Therefore, ECRs may find themselves in situations where they are interested in posting a preprint but are unsure how to approach their co-authors or advisor about preprinting. Leveraging our own experiences as ECRs, and feedback from the research community, we have constructed a guide for ECRs who are considering preprinting - to enable them to take ownership over the process, and to raise awareness about preprinting options. We hope that this guide helps ECRs to initiate conversations about preprinting with co-authors or consider whether to preprint their future research.

Scientific societies fostering inclusivity in the life sciences through engagement of undergraduate scientists

Scientific societies serve as communities of practice in which scientists develop many of the skills and connections required for the progression of their careers. For example, scientific societies offer a range of opportunities to attend career development programs, gain experience in communicating science, and receive recognition for achievements within their discipline. Programming for undergraduate student members has recently been increasing, both in prevalence and in its range of offerings. The Alliance to Catalyze Change for Equity in STEM Success, ACCESS, a meta-organization seeking equity and inclusivity in life sciences fields, has examined programs and opportunities focused on undergraduates across its member scientific societies to identify common themes, promising practices and challenges. In this article, we share and discuss our findings.

4.2 Applications of SPAAC and SPANC in Life Sciences

The bioorthogonal, strain-promoted azide–alkyne cycloaddition (SPAAC) and the strain-promoted alkyne–nitrone cycloaddition (SPANC) reactions have been used for conjugation with high affinity and specificity. In contrast to the cytotoxic copper-catalyzed cycloaddition, both SPAAC and SPANC are inert in biological environments. This chapter reviews the developments and applications of SPAAC and SPANC in life sciences reported since 2004, when Bertozzi et al. published the first bioorthogonal reaction.

A disulfide-based linker for thiol-norbornene conjugation: formation and cleavage of hydrogels by the use of light

Photolabile groups are the key components of photo-responsive polymers, dynamically tunable materials with multiple applications in materials and life sciences. They usually consist of a chromophore and a labile bond...