Search Results (414)

Mediterranean temporary streams are characterized by high hydrological variability that climate change is expected to intensify, increasing drought frequency and severity. These conditions represent a major threat to freshwater mussels, an imperiled group with limited mobility and strict habitat and host requirements. This study explored key factors shaping freshwater mussel community structure, including the spatial distribution, species composition and abundance of coexisting species, in two temporary streams of the Guadiana river basin (southwestern Iberian Peninsula). Pool systems in both streams were characterized and compared under average dry season and extreme drought conditions using aerial imagery, whereas mussel abundance patterns and host–mussel relationships were assessed in the larger and more hydrologically stable stream. Results showed that drought severity had different effects on pool refugia persistence, longitudinal distribution and host fish availability between streams. The smaller stream experienced extensive pool desiccation during extreme drought, causing widespread mussel mortality, whereas the larger stream retained numerous pools that allowed mussel persistence. Mussel abundance showed no relationship with pool size. However, Unio tumidiformis abundance was positively associated with native fish abundance, particularly in upstream reaches. These results highlight hydrological stability and host availability as key drivers of freshwater mussel persistence in Mediterranean temporary streams. Full article

Bigels (BGs) are promising biphasic systems for extrusion-based 3D food printing inks. In this study, BG inks were formulated by combining a 6% beeswax—4% monoglycerides oleogel (OG) with a 4% gelatin—1% guar gum hydrogel (HG). The BGs were formulated at OG:HG ratios of 10:90 up to 50:50. The effect of the OG:HG ratio on appearance, microstructure, extrusion, rheological and thermal characteristics was investigated to assess printability and shape fidelity. All formulations showed no signs of phase separation during storage, while changes in color were observed with increasing OG content, suggesting modifications in phase distribution and light-scattering behavior. Increasing the OG content induced a transition from OG-in-HG systems to a bicontinuous structure at a 50:50 ratio. All inks showed shear-thinning behavior (G′ > G″) and viscoelastic properties suitable for 3D printing. BG with intermediate OG contents displayed moderate extrusion forces (7.27–9.00 N) and improved structural recovery (up to ≈60%), consistent with desirable printability and appropriate yield/flow points to ensure shape fidelity after deposition. Thermal analysis further confirmed the coexistence of OG and HG phases, ensuring structural integrity at printing temperature. These findings demonstrate the potential of BG as tunable, fat-reduced inks for 3D food structuring. Full article

Portable Buddhist shrines refer to small-scale mobile or assembled shrines, typically made of wood, stone, clay, and metal. They were initially used as temporary ritual sites or ornamental attachments for temples and stupas, later becoming independent objects of devotion. This art form, the origins of which can be traced to ancient India and later diverse regional traditions, has been discovered in significant quantities along the Silk Road and neighboring regions. Previously, scholarly attention centered primarily on exquisite wall shrines, stupa-shaped shrines, and stele-shaped shrines. However, when factors such as the spatial arrangement and ritual functions of mobile ritual sites are taken into account, along with the materials and techniques employed in creating Buddhist shrines, artifacts such as badge-style bronze Buddha statues, painted silk banners, and wooden panel paintings may also be classified as portable Buddhist shrines. Accordingly, portable Buddhist shrines can be divided into three forms: pedestal, hanging, and open–close or mother–child. A key reason for this expanded classification is that all such forms are functionally and stylistically linked to large-scale cave temples. Moreover, these shrines share a common visual grammar, defined by the dynamic integration of images and texts and the mutual imitation and complementarity of statue and painting. This represents a quintessential example of cross-cultural dissemination and the coexistence of local traditions in Buddhist art. Full article

Behaviour management represents a complex dimension of the teaching profession, especially in contexts of high social vulnerability. This instrumental case study qualitatively analysed the experiences of four teachers from a technical–professional high school in Santiago, Chile, focusing on how they construct and sustain behaviour management in everyday classroom work. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews and analysed using qualitative content analysis. Findings foreground a central tension in which reactive management predominates over preventive strategies, shaping how teachers sustain pedagogical continuity under recurrent disruption. Teachers describe this work as a reflective construction negotiated between routines and adaptation to contingencies, supported by bonds of trust with students and informal peer collaboration within an institutional structure perceived as fragmented. These insights can inform teacher education by strengthening practice-oriented preparation for behaviour management and can support the refinement of educational coexistence policies in context-sensitive ways. Full article

Energy Transition Regions (ETRs) face the dual challenge of phasing out carbon-intensive activities while ensuring economic viability, social stability, and climate resilience. This study operationalises the Resilience–Investment–Land Nexus (RILN) to examine how climate vulnerability, investment decision-making, land-use planning, and governance capacity interact to shape transition outcomes. An expert survey conducted in three European ETRs, Western Macedonia (Greece), Silesia (Poland), and Stara Zagora (Bulgaria), assesses perceptions of optimal investment and land-use strategies (OILUS) alongside the political and local governance framework (PLGF) enabling their implementation. A radar-based multi-criteria diagnostic analysis reveals a consistent implementation gap: strong strategic alignment on climate-resilient planning coexists with weaker institutional capacity, coordination, financial resources, and data availability. Cross-country differences indicate that these constraints are shaped by context-specific governance structures rather than uniform technical barriers. Formal heterogeneity analysis using nonparametric tests and ordinal regression models reveals limited divergence in strategic priorities but substantial variation in governance capacity perceptions across countries. The findings highlight governance readiness as a critical determinant of whether climate-resilient investment strategies can be translated into actionable policies. By providing an empirically grounded operationalisation of the RILN framework, the study offers a diagnostic approach for identifying institutional bottlenecks and informing more feasible transition pathways in regions undergoing structural energy transformation. Full article

A/T(U) and G/C nucleobase pair formation in DNA and RNA is crucial to numerous fundamental biological processes, including replication, transcription, and translation. The specificity of A/T(U) and G/C base pairing is used for the recognition of complementary sequences in medical and biotechnological applications, such as PCR, nucleic acid drugs, and CRISPR–Cas9-based gene editing. It is essential to understand and predict fidelity of biological reactions, avoiding off-target binding, in order to improve the accuracy and efficacy of applications. In particular, recognition mechanisms of complementary bases or whole sequences must be understood in detail. Despite the prevailing view that Watson–Crick hydrogen bonding is a primary mechanism for complementary base recognition, several experiments have shown that DNA polymerase does not require hydrogen bonding to select complementary bases. Other factors, such as the shape and geometric fitting of the bases and the base stacking, also appear to be crucially involved in the selection. E.g., artificial bases lacking the ability to form hydrogen bonds can still be recognized by DNA polymerase solely based on base-pair geometry. However, hydrogen bonding also contributes importantly to recognition. The accuracy of selecting a complementary nucleobase or sequence varies depending on reactions, suggesting the co-existence of multiple selection mechanisms. This review provides an overview of biological processes and applications involving base pairing and discusses the molecular mechanism underlying complementary base recognition. Full article

How ecological factors, particularly food availability and breeding season length, shape growth strategies in ways that can override allometric constraints is a key question in life-history evolution. Here we address this question by comparing body-mass growth of two Carpodacus species of distinct body size, the streaked rosefinch C. rubicilloides (~40 g) and the pink-rumped rosefinch C. eos (~20 g), which commonly nest in the alpine zones of south Tibet. Although nestlings of both species fledged at the same age and at a similar body size relative to the adults, the larger species grew significantly faster than the smaller one, despite an allometric scaling constraint that predicts the opposite. This counterintuitive pattern may be explained by interspecific differences in (i) nestling food availability and (ii) time constraints on growth. Nestlings of C. rubicilloides fed exclusively on the seeds of a highly productive leguminous plant, whereas those of C. eos consumed a diverse array of small seeds that were expected to require greater searching effort, potentially limiting energy intake. Concurrently, C. rubicilloides experienced a shorter breeding window (~30 days) compared to its congener (~50 days), a difference likely linked to species-specific availability of food resources. These observations suggest that, for closely related species coexisting in harsh alpine environments, the effect of ecological factors on growth can override that of allometric constraints in shaping growth trajectories. Full article

Introduction: End-of-life (EOL) HIV cure-related research offers a unique opportunity to advance scientific discovery while honoring the values, dignity, and legacy of people with HIV. However, participation remains demographically skewed, mirroring long-standing inequities in who is informed, invited, and supported to take part. Synthesizing eight years of experience, published literature reviews, and community engagement from the University of California San Diego’s Last Gift program, we propose strategies to embed justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (JEDIA) throughout the design and implementation of EOL HIV cure-related studies. Discussion: Using intersectionality as a structural analytic framework, we examine how interlocking systems and social determinants shape access, consent, and participant experience, and we translate ethics into action across three themes and eight domains. As examples, we facilitate equitable access by implementing solutions that address gaps limiting awareness and feasibility of participation. We establish ongoing consent through multi-session consent processes with teach-back methods, clear healthcare proxy pathways, and explicit separation of research activities from clinical care. We center lived experiences by partnering with people with HIV and community groups, customizing participation, and honoring cultural and spiritual needs. We enable real-time course correction by using a dashboard that monitors enrollment patterns and representation. Conclusions: An intersectionality-informed, participant-centered approach is both feasible and essential to ensure HIV cure-related research advances with fairness, trust, and global relevance. Programs such as the Last Gift show that scientific rigor, integrity, and participant dignity can coexist, establishing a model for equitable HIV cure discovery. Full article

Background/Objectives: Streptococcus pneumoniae remains a major cause of invasive disease, and antimicrobial resistance is shaped by antibiotic selection and pneumococcal conjugate vaccination. A unified framework is needed to compare proposed mechanisms that maintain coexistence of antibiotic-sensitive and -resistant strains and to interpret post-vaccine resistance trajectories. Methods: We formulated a susceptible–exposed–vaccinated–infectious–recovered (SEVIR) transmission model that tracks antibiotic-sensitive and -resistant pneumococcal infections under vaccination and treatment. The basic reproduction number ($R_0$) was derived using the next-generation matrix method and used to assess local stability of the disease-free equilibrium. Using the same core structure, we evaluated three mechanism-specific extensions: treatment diversity (heterogeneous antibiotic use across host groups), pathogen diversity (serotype/subtype heterogeneity under vaccine targeting), and treatment competition (within-host competition with treatment-induced selection). Results: Treatment diversity generated stable coexistence by creating low-treatment refugia that counterbalanced strong selection in highly treated groups, supporting resistance persistence at moderate population-average treatment. Pathogen diversity reproduced serotype-specific replacement and concentration of resistance within particular subtypes after vaccination. Treatment competition produced nonlinear responses to antibiotic intensity and transient resistance surges. Overall, each mechanism explained a distinct subset of benchmark resistance patterns, suggesting that dominant drivers depend on epidemiological context. Conclusions: Interactions between vaccination, antibiotic pressure, population heterogeneity, pathogen diversity and within-host competition can yield qualitatively different resistance dynamics. Strategies combining high vaccine uptake with targeted antibiotic stewardship are likely required to curb resistance while limiting unintended serotype replacement. Full article

Southwest China’s karst region has developed a dam- and reservoir-dense pattern in which cascaded hydropower on mainstem rivers coexists with small hydropower on tributaries, forming a foundation for the region’s low-carbon energy supply. Under China’s “dual-carbon” targets and a strengthening ecological civilization agenda, it is urgent to clarify the mechanisms driving habitat quality (HQ) change under compound disturbances from cascaded hydropower, urbanization, and related pressures—especially the nonlinear pathway through which engineering disturbance propagates to ecological responses via land-use restructuring. To address this need, we develop a Cascade disturbance–Land restructuring–Habitat response chain framework and integrate an InVEST–IntPLUS–OPGD modeling approach to capture HQ dynamics in the Wujiang River Basin (1980–2020), attribute the interactive effects of coupled natural–social drivers, and project ecological responses under alternative 2035 scenarios. Results show that: (1) The basin maintained a stable ecological matrix, with forest land and cropland consistently >82.5% and forest cover near 50%, while construction land increased by 972.15 km² and water bodies by 354.23 km² (2) Mean HQ stayed high and declined by only 1.42%, with high and medium–high HQ dominating (>65%). HQ degradation is concentrated in urban expansion areas and reservoir shorelines, whereas most mountainous/forested regions remain stable; and (3) HQ spatial differentiation is mainly shaped by the synergy between forest structure and NDVI, while nonlinear urbanization edge effects impose stronger stress than hydropower development itself. Scenario simulations further indicate that a water protection pathway can enhance HQ by building integrated “water–forest” corridors that promote blue–green synergy. Overall, this study supports improved trade-off design between energy supply and ecological protection in vulnerable karst regions. Full article

Focusing on China, Japan, and the Philippines, this article examines how Marian–Guanyin cross-reading takes shape in images, stories, and ritual practice within different legal and political regimes. Rather than presuming doctrinal equivalence, the analysis treats cross-reading as a practice-driven process structured by five variables: dominant–subaltern relations, legal regime, media, theological thresholds, and intergenerational transmission. Three findings follow. First, analogy and transfer occur mainly in images and devotional practice, rather than doctrine. Second, social context determines both direction and limit: in China, plural traditions allow for devotional coexistence without doctrinal merger; in Tokugawa Japan, Marian–Guanyin likenesses serve as protective cover within underground devotion and take the form of small, portable image types; in the Philippines, Buddhist and folk religions join Catholic social rhythms through functional equivalence in imagery and rite. Third, these patterns lead to three outcome types: intericonic coexistence, type-formation under repression, and inculturation driven by practice and emotion. By distinguishing functional and perceptual equivalence from doctrinal change, and by separating official theology from community narration, the article narrows the scope of “syncretism” and proposes a transferable framework for explaining how images and ritual procedures simultaneously mark boundaries and enable boundary-crossing in unequal religious fields. Full article

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) outcomes remain suboptimal in high-burden, resource-constrained settings. Clinical and socio-economic factors contribute to loss to follow-up, failure, and mortality, yet their relative importance remains underexplored. Methods: We analyzed a retrospective cohort of patients treated for pulmonary TB in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Treatment outcomes were dichotomized as success (cured or treatment completed) versus unsuccessful (loss to follow-up, failure, or death), excluding transfers and patients still on treatment. Predictors included age, gender, income, occupation, comorbidities, HIV status, previous treatment history, patient category, and drug resistance status. Regularized logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios, while the best decision tree model was applied to identify hierarchical risk profiles. Results: Logistic regression demonstrated high accuracy (86%) and identified drug susceptibility, age, income stability, and comorbidity burden as the strongest predictors of treatment success. The decision tree achieved lower accuracy (65%) but improved detection of unsuccessful outcomes, highlighting a clear hierarchy of risk: (1) drug resistance status, (2) age, (3) income source, and (4) comorbidities. Patients with drug-resistant TB, older age, no income or reliance on grants, and coexisting conditions were at the highest risk of poor outcomes. Conclusions: Drug resistance, age, income, and comorbidity burden shape a hierarchical risk profile for TB treatment outcomes in rural South Africa. Logistic regression offered robust overall classification, while the decision tree provided transparent stratification of at-risk groups. These findings underscore the need for integrated clinical and socio-economic support strategies to improve outcomes in high-burden settings. Full article

The rapid expansion of the gig economy is reshaping work globally, producing both new opportunities and significant challenges for workers across diverse regions. This scoping review mapped global evidence on gig workers’ experiences between 2018 and 2024, following PRISMA-ScR guidelines. A comprehensive search of academic databases (EBSCOhost, Scopus, Sage, Springer, Taylor & Francis, Wiley, and Google Scholar) was conducted, yielding 1986 records, of which 26 met the inclusion criteria. Data were charted and synthesised to identify patterns in how gig workers describe their work experiences within broader socioeconomic and platform-based structures. Three interconnected themes emerged. First, freedom and flexibility remain central attractions of gig work, particularly for younger workers who value autonomy, scheduling control, and opportunities for combining multiple income streams. Second, gig work experiences vary significantly across demographic and geographic contexts, revealing unequal pathways shaped by gender, education, skill, migration status, and national labour-market conditions. Third, across all gig-work categories, workers reported precarity, including inconsistent income, job insecurity, algorithmic surveillance, limited benefits, and emotional strain. Taken together, the findings illustrate how autonomy and vulnerability coexist within the gig economy, highlighting the importance of policies and supports that address intersecting forms of inequality and promote safe, stable, and dignified work in a rapidly evolving labour landscape. Full article

Indoor air quality (IAQ) in healthcare facilities is increasingly recognized as a key determinant of occupant health, comfort, and operational performance. Owing to heterogeneous space functions, varying occupancy patterns, and dynamic operational conditions, IAQ parameters may exhibit marked spatial and temporal variability within the same facility. University-affiliated healthcare buildings, where clinical services coexist with academic and administrative activities, represent particularly complex indoor environments that remain relatively underexplored in the current IAQ literature. This study examines the spatiotemporal variability of indoor carbon dioxide (CO₂) and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations across four representative functional zones within a university-affiliated healthcare facility, including a patient waiting room, an academic office, an administrative office, and a restorative dental clinic. Continuous, long-term monitoring was conducted over a multi-month period to capture both spatial differences and diurnal dynamics under real operational conditions. Daily mean CO₂ concentrations varied across functional zones, ranging from approximately 540 to 620 ppm, with higher levels generally observed in spaces with sustained occupancy and limited ventilation. Daily mean PM_2.5 concentrations ranged from approximately 13 to 18 µg/m³, with greater variability detected in zones associated with intermittent activities and procedural sources. Unlike many IAQ studies focusing on single departments or short-term campaigns, this multi-zone, long-term assessment within a shared building infrastructure enables direct comparison of functional spaces and identification of time-specific exposure patterns. Overall, the findings highlight that IAQ conditions within healthcare facilities are shaped by both space function and temporal factors, even under shared ventilation infrastructure. The results emphasize the value of zone-specific and time-resolved IAQ assessment approaches and provide evidence-based insights to support targeted ventilation strategies, activity-aware operational controls, and improved indoor environmental management in healthcare settings. Full article

This article examines how Turkey’s 2024 amendment to the Animal Protection Law reshapes volunteer caregiving for free-roaming dogs in Istanbul by reconfiguring the practical conditions under which care is sought, coordinated, and sustained. Drawing on 43 in-depth interviews and five months of fieldwork (1 July–30 November 2025), this study combines constructivist grounded theory with reflexive thematic analysis to trace how legal change is encountered through everyday governance interfaces and how these encounters reorganize caregivers’ routines, capacities, and moral worlds. The analysis yields four interlocking findings. First, caregivers describe a temporality of “living in pre-loss,” in which anticipated removal, disappearance, and uncertain outcomes generate chronic vigilance, anticipatory grief, and ambiguous loss without closure. Second, caregiving is increasingly recalibrated as risk management: commitments persist, but intervention narrows through heightened exposure to complaints, reputational scrutiny, and fears that help-seeking may backfire. Third, institutional pathways—hotlines, shelter intake, and municipal responses—are experienced as discretionary and opaque, producing a fluctuating threshold between assistance and harm that conditions whether caregivers engage official systems at all. Fourth, this study identifies a recurring veterinary bottleneck at the street–clinic–recovery handover, where limited short-term holding capacity stalls treatment trajectories and displaces recovery labor into precarious domestic and informal spaces. Together, these findings argue that caregiver well-being is not ancillary to animal welfare governance but constitutive of it. It shapes the continuity of monitoring, the timeliness of intervention, and the everyday mediation through which coexistence is maintained under intensified legal and political pressure. Full article