Competing definitions of justice in Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Politics indicate the existence of two distinct economic systems with different normative priorities. The three-class society of the Platonic economy (guardians, auxiliaries, producers) gives rise to guardians who by virtue are expected to enforce output targets on producers directly or through auxiliaries. The three-class society of the Aristotelian economy (rich, middle, poor) facilitates the emergence of different ruling coalitions and compensates efficiency losses of vertical production processes with political gains derived from representative governance. In the Aristotelian economy, the middle class is better off than in the Platonic economy (auxiliaries), because a just society (polity) is achieved under its rule. I argue that the equilibrium solutions of the Platonic and Aristotelian systems provide the normative foundations for the distinction between plan and market.

Research on the conjunction of business elites and sustainable development fascinates practitioners and international organizations but faces methodological and data collection challenges within academia. Firstly, studies on corporate sustainability have promptly increased but have been extremely focused on an organizational level of analysis, which inhibits figuring out whether business decisions have an impact at the macro or societal level. Secondly, major policy recommendations on sustainable development point to the creation of networks and partnerships among business elites, governments and civil organizations but it is largely ignored which specific type of network configuration goes along with sustainable development. Thirdly, the literature on sustainable development often considered business elites as homogenous and concentrated, even though conflicting views exist regarding aspects of sustainable development. Finally, the influence of business elites on environmental, social and economic policies has been more supposed than empirically demonstrated. Past research has been unable to overcome these challenges in part due to insufficient data clarifying the full breadth of business elite connections with political and civil organizations nationally and transnationally, and the lack of a combination of analytical tools for analyzing multilevel characteristics and actions. The present paper proposes a research agenda to comprehend the role of business elites in sustainable development. Future studies should use network analysis as leverage, uncover the networks among business and political elites, focus on Latin American economies and regions, bypass case studies and develop cross-national and transnational analysis, and turn to a combination of causal methods.

Climate simulations are the fuel to drive hydrological models that are used to assess the impacts of climate change and variability on hydrological parameters, such as river discharges, soil moisture, and evapotranspiration. Unlike with cars, where we know which fuel the engine requires, we never know in advance what unexpected side effects might be caused by the fuel we feed our models with. Sometimes we increase the fuel's octane number (bias correction) to achieve better performance and find out that the model behaves differently but not always as was expected or desired. This study investigates the impacts of projected climate change on the hydrology of the Upper Blue Nile catchment using two model ensembles consisting of five global CMIP5 Earth system models and 10 regional climate models (CORDEX Africa). WATCH forcing data were used to calibrate an eco-hydrological model and to bias-correct both model ensembles using slightly differing approaches. On the one hand it was found that the bias correction methods considerably improved the performance of average rainfall characteristics in the reference period (1970–1999) in most of the cases. This also holds true for non-extreme discharge conditions between Q20 and Q80. On the other hand, bias-corrected simulations tend to overemphasize magnitudes of projected change signals and extremes. A general weakness of both uncorrected and bias-corrected simulations is the rather poor representation of high and low flows and their extremes, which were often deteriorated by bias correction. This inaccuracy is a crucial deficiency for regional impact studies dealing with water management issues and it is therefore important to analyse model performance and characteristics and the effect of bias correction, and eventually to exclude some climate models from the ensemble. However, the multi-model means of all ensembles project increasing average annual discharges in the Upper Blue Nile catchment and a shift in seasonal patterns, with decreasing discharges in June and July and increasing discharges from August to November.

Extra-tropical cyclones in the subantarctic play a central role in the poleward transport of heat and moisture into Antarctica, with the latter being a key component of the mass balance of the Antarctic ice sheet. As the climate in this region undergoes substantial changes, it is anticipated that the character of these synoptic features will change. There are a number of different methods used to identify and track cyclones, which can potentially lead to different conclusions as to cyclone variability and trends, and mechanisms which drive these features. Given this, it is timely to assess the level of consensus among 14 state-of-the-art cyclone identification and tracking methods. We undertake this comparison with the ERA-Interim data-set for the period 1979–2008 and find large differences in the number of tracks identified by different methods, but the spatial patterns of the system density broadly agree. Links between large-scale modes of variability, such as the Southern Annular Mode (SAM), and subantarctic cyclones as suggested in the literature are confirmed by our analysis. Trends in the number of cyclone tracks show a more diverse picture. Robust trends are identified by almost all methods for austral summer over the region south to 60°S, mainly due to the strong relation to SAM, whereas in austral winter the methods disagree in the statistical significance of the trends. The agreement among the methods is greater when the comparison is confined to the stronger cyclones. This is confirmed by a moisture flux analysis associated with these strong synoptic systems. Our results indicate that multiple cyclone identification and tracking methods should be used to obtain robust conclusions for trends in cyclone characteristics as well as their relation to the large-scale circulation in the subantarctic region.

A new generation of library systems is about to replace the so-called integrated library systems, which are beginning to fade. The library services platforms Alma, FOLIO and Worldshare Management Services (WMS), which are already in productive operation in some places, were examined with regard to their suitability for use in German libraries. The technical framework conditions and characteristics of those library management systems were studied and inventorized, so that they could be evaluated according to objective criteria. Based on that evaluation, recommendations were drawn up for libraries. The foundation for the investigation is made up of three components: First, German libraries’ requirements in relation to the new generation of systems were distilled from a broad range of literature and categorized. Furthermore, interviews were conducted with experts, addressing questions of system administration. Also, a widely distributed user survey was carried out to collect opinions on the performance of the systems in productive operation. The systems that are already in productive operation (Alma and WMS) can be employed to implement standard processes and integration options so that standard tasks can be accomplished. However, there are still unresolved issues with regard to nationally established and cooperatively maintained systems (federation catalogs, Zeitschriftendatenbank, Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek). The main advantage of library services platforms lies in the possibility of managing print and electronic resources in one system. The systems conform to German and European regulations and laws in security aspects, but providers still have to clarify their compliance regarding the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Problems arise from cloud computing and the associated remote and distributed data storage: Libraries can access their own data through application programming interfaces only. Finally, no increases in efficiency or cost reductions have been achieved so far.

The e-vector orientation of linearly polarized light represents an important visual stimulus for many insects. Especially the detection of polarized skylight by many navigating insect species is known to improve their orientation skills. While great progress has been made towards describing both the anatomy and function of neural circuit elements mediating behaviors related to navigation, relatively little is known about how insects perceive non-celestial polarized light stimuli, like reflections off water, leaves, or shiny body surfaces. Work on different species suggests that these behaviors are not mediated by the “Dorsal Rim Area” (DRA), a specialized region in the dorsal periphery of the adult compound eye, where ommatidia contain highly polarization-sensitive photoreceptor cells whose receptive fields point towards the sky. So far, only few cases of polarization-sensitive photoreceptors have been described in the ventral periphery of the insect retina. Furthermore, both the structure and function of those neural circuits connecting to these photoreceptor inputs remain largely uncharacterized. Here we review the known data on non-celestial polarization vision from different insect species (dragonflies, butterflies, beetles, bugs and flies) and present three well-characterized examples for functionally specialized non-DRA detectors from different insects that seem perfectly suited for mediating such behaviors. Finally, using recent advances from circuit dissection in Drosophila melanogaster, we discuss what types of potential candidate neurons could be involved in forming the underlying neural circuitry mediating non- celestial polarization vision.

The [FeFe]-hydrogenases of bacteria and algae are the most efficient hydrogen conversion catalysts in nature. Their active-site cofactor (H-cluster) comprises a [4Fe–4S] cluster linked to a unique diiron site that binds three carbon monoxide (CO) and two cyanide (CN−) ligands. Understanding microbial hydrogen conversion requires elucidation of the interplay of proton and electron transfer events at the H-cluster. We performed real-time spectroscopy on [FeFe]-hydrogenase protein films under controlled variation of atmospheric gas composition, sample pH, and reductant concentration. Attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor shifts of the CO/CN− vibrational bands in response to redox and protonation changes. Three different [FeFe]-hydrogenases and several protein and cofactor variants were compared, including element and isotopic exchange studies. A protonated equivalent (HoxH) of the oxidized state (Hox) was found, which preferentially accumulated at acidic pH and under reducing conditions. We show that the one- electron reduced state Hred′ represents an intrinsically protonated species. Interestingly, the formation of HoxH and Hred′ was independent of the established proton pathway to the diiron site. Quantum chemical calculations of the respective CO/CN− infrared band patterns favored a cysteine ligand of the [4Fe–4S] cluster as the protonation site in HoxH and Hred′. We propose that proton-coupled electron transfer facilitates reduction of the [4Fe–4S] cluster and prevents premature formation of a hydride at the catalytic diiron site. Our findings imply that protonation events both at the [4Fe–4S] cluster and at the diiron site of the H-cluster are important in the hydrogen conversion reaction of [FeFe]-hydrogenases.

Background: Tungiasis (sand flea disease) is a neglected tropical skin disease caused by female sand fleas (Tunga spp.) embedded in the skin of the host. The disease is common in sub-Saharan Africa and predominantly affects children living in impoverished rural communities. In these settings tungiasis is associated with important morbidity. Whether tungiasis impairs life quality has never been studied. Methods: The study was performed in 50 children with tungiasis, living in resource-poor communities in coastal Kenya. Based on the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) a tool was developed to determine life quality impairment associated with tungiasis in children, the tungiasis- related Dermatology of Life Quality Index (tungiasis-related-DLQI). Pain and itching were assessed using visual scales ranging from 0–3 points. The intensity of infection and the acute and chronic severity of tungiasis were determined using standard methods. Results: Seventy eight percent of the patients reported a moderate to very large effect of tungiasis on life quality at the time of the diagnosis. The degree of impairment correlated with the number of viable sand fleas present in the skin (rho = 0.64, p < 0.001), the severity score of acute clinical pathology (rho = 0.74, p < 0.001), and the intensity of pain (rho = 0.82, p < 0.001). Disturbance of sleep and concentration difficulties were the most frequent restriction categories (86% and 84%, respectively). Four weeks after curative treatment, life quality had improved significantly. On the individual level the amelioration of life quality correlated closely with the regression of clinical pathology (rho = 0.61, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The parasitic skin disease tungiasis considerably impairs life quality in children in rural Kenya. After effective treatment, life quality improves rapidly.

The aim of this study was to test whether a combination of plant bioactive lipid compounds (also termed ‘essential oils’) and biotin (PBLC+B) could decrease the mobilization of body reserves and ketosis incidence in postpartum dairy cows. We compared non-supplemented control (CON) cows with cows receiving monensin (MON) as a controlled-release capsule at d -21, and with cows receiving PBLC+B from day (d) -21 before calving until calving (Phase 1) and further until d 37 after calving (Phase 2), followed by PBLC+B discontinuation from d 38 to d 58 (Phase 3). The PBLC+B cows had higher body weight and higher back fat thickness than CON cows and lesser body weight change than MON and CON cows in Phase 3. Body condition score was not different among groups. Milk protein concentration tended to be higher on the first herd test day in PBLC+B vs. CON cows. Milk fat concentration tended to be highest in PBLC+B cows throughout Phases 2 and 3, with significantly higher values in PBLC+B vs. MON cows on the second herd test day. Yields of energy- corrected milk were higher in PBLC+B vs. CON and MON cows in Phase 2 and higher in PBLC+B and MON cows vs. CON cows in Phase 3. The incidence of subclinical ketosis was 83%, 61% and 50% in CON, PBLC+B and MON cows, respectively, with lower mean β-hydroxybutyrate values in MON than in PBLC+B cows in Phase 1 prepartum. The serum triglyceride concentration was higher in PBLC+B vs. CON cows on d 37. No differences were observed in serum glucose, urea, non-esterified fatty acids, cholesterol and bilirubin concentrations. Aspartate transaminase and γ-glutamyltranspeptidase but not glutamate dehydrogenase activities tended to be highest in MON and lowest in PBLC+B in Phase 2. We conclude that PBLC+B prevent body weight loss after parturition and are associated with similar ketosis incidence and partly higher yields of energy-corrected milk compared to MON supplementation of dairy cows.

Background: Clostridium difficile infections (CDI) in humans range from asymptomatic carriage to life-threatening intestinal disease. Findings on C. difficile in various animal species and an overlap in ribotypes (RTs) suggest potential zoonotic transmission. However, the impact of animals for human CDI remains unclear. Methods: In a large-scale survey we collected 1,447 fecal samples to determine the occurrence of C. difficile in small companion animals (dogs and cats) and their owners and to assess potential epidemiological links within the community. The Germany-wide survey was conducted from July 2012-August 2013. PCR ribotyping, Multilocus VNTR Analysis (MLVA) and PCR detection of toxin genes were used to characterize isolated C. difficile strains. A database was defined and logistic regression used to identify putative factors associated with fecal shedding of C. difficile. Results: In total, 1,418 samples met the inclusion criteria. The isolation rates for small companion animals and their owners within the community were similarly low with 3.0% (25/840) and 2.9% (17/578), respectively. PCR ribotyping revealed eight and twelve different RTs in animals and humans, respectively, whereas three RTs were isolated in both, humans and animals. RT 014/0, a well-known human hospital-associated lineage, was predominantly detected in animal samples. Moreover, the potentially highly pathogenic RTs 027 and 078 were isolated from dogs. Even though, C. difficile did not occur simultaneously in animals and humans sharing the same household. The results of the epidemiological analysis of factors associated with fecal shedding of C. difficile support the hypothesis of a zoonotic potential. Conclusions: Molecular characterization and epidemiological analysis revealed that the zoonotic risk for C. difficile associated with dogs and cats within the community is low but cannot be excluded.

The poor healing potential of tendons is still a clinical problem, and the use of Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) was hypothesized to stimulate healing. As the efficacy of PRPs remains unproven, platelet lysate (PL) could be an alternative with its main advantages of storage and characterization before use. Five different blood products were prepared from 16 male donors: human serum, two PRPs (Arthrex, (PRP-ACP); RegenLab (PRP-BCT)), platelet concentrate (apheresis, PC), and PL (freezing-thawing destruction of PC). Additionally, ten commercial allogenic PLs (AlloPL) from pooled donors were tested. The highest concentration of most growth factors was found in AlloPL, whereas the release of growth factors lasted longer in the other products. PRP-ACP, PRP- BCT, and PC significantly increased cell viability of human tenocyte-like cells, whereas PC and AlloPL increased Col1A1 expression and PRP-BCT increased Col3A1 expression. MMP-1, IL-1β, and HGF expression was significantly increased and Scleraxis expression decreased by most blood products. COX1 expression significantly decreased by PC and AlloPL. No clear positive effects on tendon cell biology could be shown, which might partially explain the weak outcome results in clinical practice. Pooled PL seemed to have the most beneficial effects and might be the future in using blood products for tendon tissue regeneration.

Motor neurons in the spinal cord are found grouped in nuclear structures termed pools, whose position is precisely orchestrated during development. Despite the emerging role of pool organization in the assembly of spinal circuits, little is known about the morphogenetic programs underlying the patterning of motor neuron subtypes. We applied three-dimensional analysis of motor neuron position to reveal the roles and contributions of cell adhesive function by inactivating N-cadherin, catenin, and afadin signaling. Our findings reveal that nuclear organization of motor neurons is dependent on inside-out positioning, orchestrated by N-cadherin, catenin, and afadin activities, controlling cell body layering on the medio-lateral axis. In addition to this lamination-like program, motor neurons undergo a secondary, independent phase of organization. This process results in segregation of motor neurons along the dorso-ventral axis of the spinal cord, does not require N-cadherin or afadin activity, and can proceed even when medio-lateral positioning is perturbed.

Near-term climate predictions such as decadal climate forecasts are increasingly being used to guide adaptation measures. For near-term probabilistic predictions to be useful, systematic errors of the forecasting systems have to be corrected. While methods for the calibration of probabilistic forecasts are readily available, these have to be adapted to the specifics of decadal climate forecasts including the long time horizon of decadal climate forecasts, lead-time-dependent systematic errors (drift) and the errors in the representation of long-term changes and variability. These features are compounded by small ensemble sizes to describe forecast uncertainty and a relatively short period for which typically pairs of reforecasts and observations are available to estimate calibration parameters. We introduce the Decadal Climate Forecast Recalibration Strategy (DeFoReSt), a parametric approach to recalibrate decadal ensemble forecasts that takes the above specifics into account. DeFoReSt optimizes forecast quality as measured by the continuous ranked probability score (CRPS). Using a toy model to generate synthetic forecast observation pairs, we demonstrate the positive effect on forecast quality in situations with pronounced and limited predictability. Finally, we apply DeFoReSt to decadal surface temperature forecasts from the MiKlip prototype system and find consistent, and sometimes considerable, improvements in forecast quality compared with a simple calibration of the lead-time-dependent systematic errors.

Background: Cross‐sectional studies suggested that allergy prevalence in childhood is higher in boys compared to girls, but it remains unclear whether this inequality changes after puberty. We examined the sex‐specific prevalence of asthma and rhinitis as single and as multimorbid diseases before and after puberty onset in longitudinal cohort data. Methods: In six European population‐based birth cohorts of MeDALL, we assessed the outcomes: current rhinitis, current asthma, current allergic multimorbidity (ie, concurrent asthma and rhinitis), puberty status and allergic sensitization by specific serum antibodies (immunoglobulin E) against aero‐allergens. With generalized estimating equations, we analysed the effects of sex, age, puberty (yes/no) and possible confounders on the prevalence of asthma and rhinitis, and allergic multimorbidity in each cohort separately and performed individual participant data meta‐analysis. Findings: We included data from 19 013 participants from birth to age 14‐20 years. Current rhinitis only affected girls less often than boys before and after puberty onset: adjusted odds ratio for females vs males 0.79 (95%‐confidence interval 0.73‐0.86) and 0.86 (0.79‐0.94), respectively (sex‐puberty interaction P = .089). Similarly, for current asthma only, females were less often affected than boys both before and after puberty onset: 0.71, 0.63‐0.81 and 0.81, 0.64‐1.02, respectively (sex‐puberty interaction P = .327). The prevalence of allergic multimorbidity showed the strongest sex effect before puberty onset (female‐male‐OR 0.55, 0.46‐0.64) and a considerable shift towards a sex‐balanced prevalence after puberty onset (0.89, 0.74‐1.04); sex‐puberty interaction: P < .001. Interpretation: The male predominance in prevalence before puberty and the “sex‐shift” towards females after puberty onset were strongest in multimorbid patients who had asthma and rhinitis concurrently.

Staphylococcus aureus is the most common contagious pathogen associated with bovine subclinical mastitis. Current diagnosis of S. aureus mastitis is based on bacteriological culture of milk samples and somatic cell counts, which lack either sensitivity or specificity. Identification of milk proteins that contribute to host defense and their variable responses to pathogenic stimuli would enable the characterization of putative biomarkers of subclinical mastitis. To accomplish this, milk whey samples from healthy and mastitic dairy cows were analyzed using a label-free quantitative proteomics approach. In total, 90 proteins were identified, of which 25 showed significant differential abundance between healthy and mastitic samples. In silico functional analyses indicated the involvement of the differentially abundant proteins in biological mechanisms and signaling pathways related to host defense including pathogen-recognition, direct antimicrobial function, and the acute-phase response. This proteomics and bioinformatics analysis not only facilitates the identification of putative biomarkers of S. aureus subclinical mastitis but also recapitulates previous findings demonstrating the abundance of host defense proteins in intramammary infection. All mass spectrometry data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD007516.

The Castel Giorgio-Torre Alfina (CG-TA, central Italy) is a geothermal reservoir whose fluids are hosted in a carbonate formation at temperatures ranging between 120°C and 210°C. Data from deep wells suggest the existence of convective flow. We present the 3D numerical model of the CG-TA to simulate the undisturbed natural geothermal field and investigate the impacts of the exploitation process. The open source finite-element code OpenGeoSys is applied to solve the coupled systems of partial differential equations. The commercial software FEFLOW® is also used as additional numerical constraint. Calculated pressure and temperature have been calibrated against data from geothermal wells. The flow field displays multicellular convective patterns that cover the entire geothermal reservoir. The resulting thermal plumes protrude vertically over 3 km at Darcy velocity of about  m/s. The analysis of the exploitation process demonstrated the sustainability of a geothermal doublet for the development of a 5 MW pilot plant. The buoyant circulation within the geothermal system allows the reservoir to sustain a 50-year production at a flow rate of 1050 t/h. The distance of 2 km, between the production and reinjection wells, is sufficient to prevent any thermal breakthrough within the estimated operational lifetime. OGS and FELFOW results are qualitatively very similar with differences in peak velocities and temperatures. The case study provides valuable guidelines for future exploitation of the CG-TA deep geothermal reservoir.

Background: Due to an increasing demand in health care services plans to substitute selective physician-conducted medical activities have become attractive. Because administration of a blood transfusion is a highly standardized procedure, it might be evaluated if obtaining a patient’s consent for a blood transfusion can be delegated to allied healthcare professionals. Physicians and patients perceive risks of transfusions differently. However, it is unknown how allied healthcare professionals perceive risks of transfusion-associated adverse events. Methods: Patients (n = 506) and allied healthcare professionals (n = 185) of an academic teaching hospital were asked to quantify their concerns about transfusions including five predefined transfusion-associated risks and their incidences. Results: Blood transfusions were considered to be generally harmful by 10.9% of patients and 14.6% of caregivers (P = 0.180). Among all surveyed patients, 36.8% were worried about infection-transmissions (caregivers: 27.6%; P = 0.024). Compared to 5.4% of caregivers, 13.6% of patients believed infection-transmission was a frequent complication (P = 0.003). Caregivers ranked the risks of receiving an AB0-mismatch transfusion (caregivers: 29.7% vs. patients: 19.2%, P = 0.003) or a transfusion-associated allergic reaction (caregivers: 17.3% vs. patients: 11.1%, P = 0.030) significantly higher than patients and were aware of the high incidence of transfusion-associated fever (caregivers: 17.8% vs. patients: 8.3%, P < 0.001). Conclusion: A significant part of interviewees perceived transfusions as a general health hazard. Patients perceived infection-transmissions as the most frequent and greatest transfusion- associated threat while caregivers focused on fatal AB0-mismatch transfusions and allergic reactions. Understanding the patients’ main concerns about blood transfusions and considering that these concerns might differ from the view of healthcare professionals might improve the process of shared decision making.

In the spring oilseed rape (OSR) cultivar ‘Mozart’ grown under optimal N supply (NO) or mild N deficiency (NL) the transcriptome changes associated with progressing age until early senescence in developmentally old lower canopy leaves (leaf #4) and younger higher canopy leaves (leaf #8) were investigated. Twelve weeks old NO and NL plants appeared phenotypically and transcriptomically identical, but thereafter distinct nutrition-dependent differences in gene expression patterns in lower and upper canopy leaves emerged. In NO leaves #4 of 14-week-old compared to 13-week-old plants, ∼600 genes were up- or downregulated, whereas in NL leaves #4 ∼3000 genes were up- or downregulated. In contrast, in 15-week-old compared to 13-week-old upper canopy leaves #8 more genes were up- or downregulated in optimally N-supplied plants (∼2000 genes) than in N-depleted plants (∼750 genes). This opposing effect of N depletion on gene regulation was even more prominent among photosynthesis-related genes (PSGs). Between week 13 and 14 in leaves #4, 99 of 110 PSGs were downregulated in NL plants, but none in NO plants. In contrast, from weeks 13 to 16 in leaves #8 of NL plants only 11 PSGs were downregulated in comparison to 66 PSGs in NO plants. Different effects of N depletion in lower versus upper canopy leaves were also apparent in upregulation of autophagy genes and NAC transcription factors. More than half of the regulated NAC and WRKY transcription factor, autophagy and protease genes were specifically regulated in NL leaves #4 or NO leaves #8 and thus may contribute to differences in senescence and nutrient mobilization in these leaves. We suggest that in N-deficient plants the upper leaves retain their N resources longer than in amply fertilized plants and remobilize them only after shedding of the lower leaves.