Background and Aim: Methicillin-resistant coagulase-positive Staphylococci (MRCoPS), including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (MRSP), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus coagulans (MRSC), are emerging zoonotic pathogens in veterinary hospitals, posing significant infection control challenges. This study aimed to investigate the molecular epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance profiles, and clonal dissemination of MRCoPS across environmental surfaces, veterinary personnel, and canine patients at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Chulalongkorn University (VTH-CU), Thailand.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 216 environmental samples, 23 veterinary staff, and 14 canine patients. Isolates were identified using biochemical tests, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Methicillin resistance was confirmed by mecA gene detection. Antimicrobial susceptibility was evaluated through disk diffusion following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. Molecular typing was performed using staphylococcal cassette mec (SCCmec) PCR and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Multivariate logistic regression identified environmental predictors of MRCoPS contamination.

Results: Among 88 coagulase-positive isolates, 62 (70.5%) were methicillin resistant, predominantly MRSP (91.9%), followed by MRSC (8.1%) and MRSA (1.6%). Floors represented the principal environmental reservoir, with significantly higher contamination odds than medical instruments (adjusted odds ratios [AOR] = 0.32; 95% confidence interval = 0.12–0.86; p = 0.024). The dermatological unit showed a six-fold higher risk of MRCoPS contamination than the medicine unit (AOR = 5.86; p = 0.027). All MRSC isolates carried SCCmec type V and displayed a consistent triple resistance pattern (gentamicin-clindamycin-erythromycin), while MRSP isolates exhibited diverse antibiograms and untypeable SCCmec elements. PFGE revealed clonal similarity (pattern A) between canine and environmental isolates, confirming the potential for nosocomial transmission.

Conclusion: MRCoPS, particularly MRSP, were widely distributed and persistent in the VTH-CU environment, despite routine cleaning. The clonal overlap among environmental and canine isolates highlights potential cross-contamination within the hospital. Strengthened disinfection protocols, antimicrobial stewardship programs, and regular environmental surveillance are imperative to mitigate the spread of multidrug-resistant staphylococci. This study highlights the importance of integrating environmental, animal, and human infection control practices in veterinary facilities within the context of One Health.

γδ T cells are a highly abundant lymphocyte subset in chickens and play key roles in early immune responses to infection. It has been recently shown that γδ T cells restrict Marek’s disease virus (MDV) pathogenesis; however, it remained elusive if they play a role in vaccine protection. In this study, we vaccinated γδ T-cell-knockout chickens with the commercial turkey herpesvirus (HVT) vaccine and challenged them with very virulent MDV. The disease incidence was significantly increased in vaccinated chickens in the absence of γδ T cells. This increase was comparable to a previous study in unvaccinated γδ T-cell-knockout chickens, suggesting that γδ T cells only play a minor role in vaccine protection. Furthermore, the viral load in the spleen was significantly increased in the absence of γδ T cells. Interestingly, viral load in the skin and in dust shed by the animals was drastically increased, suggesting that the absence of γδ T cells affects MDV shedding. In addition, we quantified various immune cell subsets to determine if these could be responsible for the observed phenotypes. Together, our data indicate that γδ T cells only play a minor role in HVT-mediated protection, but their absence drastically affects shedding of this deadly pathogen in vaccinated animals.

Rydberg atoms in dc electric fields acquire static dipole moments. When the atoms are close to a surface producing an inhomogeneous electric field, such as by the adsorbates on an atom chip, depending on the sign of the dipole moment of the Rydberg-Stark eigenstate, the atoms may experience a force toward or away from the surface. We show that by applying a bias electric field and coupling a desired Rydberg state by a microwave field of proper frequency to another Rydberg state with opposite sign of the dipole moment, we can create a trapping potential for the atom at a prescribed distance from the surface. Perfectly overlapping trapping potentials for several Rydberg states can also be created by multicomponent microwave fields. A pair of such trapped Rydberg states of an atom can represent a qubit. Finally, we discuss an optimal realization of the SWAP gate between pairs of such atomic Rydberg qubits separated by a large distance but interacting with a common mode of a planar microwave resonator at finite temperature.

Theories of immigrant selection posit that immigrants’ pre-migration social standing may explain their children’s educational outcomes. However, this has only been tested in Nordic and Western European countries, where the children of immigrants perform especially well in education. Moreover, few studies investigate the impact of selection on different educational outcomes. Using the 2015 Italian survey ‘Integration of the Second Generation’, we investigate whether (a) immigrant parents are more educated than similar individuals in their countries of origin (positively selected); (b) selection is associated with children’s school grades, attitudes, and aspirations; (c) selection explains educational differences across immigrant groups. We find wide variation in educational selectivity between origin groups. In line with prior evidence, educational selectivity is associated with higher educational aspirations but not school grades, which may lock the second-generation into an “aspiration squeeze”, with ambitious goals but lower means to attain them.

The unicellular red alga Cyanidioschyzon merolae is a valuable model organism for studying pre-mRNA splicing, stress adaptation, and biotechnological applications. However, the limited availability of selectable markers has constrained its potential in genetic engineering. In this study, we evaluated the sul1 gene, which encodes a sulfadiazine-resistant variant of dihydropteroate synthase, as a new selectable marker (SUL) for C. merolae transformation. SUL has previously been used for this purpose in plants and green algae. We analyzed the sensitivity of C. merolae to sulfadiazine and determined the concentration that effectively inhibited cell growth. To test the effectiveness of SUL as a selectable marker, we designed a transformation construct containing SUL directed to the algal mitochondria through a native targeting peptide, along with mVenus to visualize transformation. We integrated the construct into a neutral genomic locus via homologous recombination. Fluorescence microscopy confirmed stable mVenus expression, and sulfadiazine selection successfully enriched transformed cells. As a demonstration of the utility of this marker, we rescued the large-cell phenotype of a cell division cycle-like kinase 2 (CmClk2) mutant by replacing the CAT-marked kinase domain deletion with the SUL-marked native kinase domain, thereby restoring CmClk2 function and recycling the CAT marker. The deletion phenotype provides evidence for a conserved cell-cycle regulatory role for CmClk2 in C. merolae. Beyond establishing SUL as an effective selectable marker, this highlights how SUL facilitates functional genetic studies of essential cellular regulators.

Cu(II) complexes with monoalkylated oxacyclen ligands (C12, C16, and C18) have been investigated regarding their interaction with DNA by different methods: circular dichroism, UV/VIS (ultraviolet-visible) and fluorescence spectroscopy as well as by gel electrophoresis. The results demonstrate that the complexes can cleave DNA through both hydrolytic and oxidative mechanisms, with hydroxyl radicals and hydrogen peroxide identified as the reactive oxygen species involved. The targeted incorporation of alkyl chains significantly enhances the DNA-binding affinity of the Cu(II) complexes, and the length of the alkyl substituents plays an important role, as they can interact with the major groove of the DNA. Alkylation is the determining structural factor responsible for the enhanced DNA interaction, since such an interaction is not observed with unsubstituted complexes. Moreover, the length of the alkyl chains significantly influences this behavior, as longer substituents induce a concentration-dependent DNA aggregation, a phenomenon absent in the nonalkylated analog. This aggregation and condensation behavior is examined using atomic force microscopy and dynamic light scattering. Moreover, DNA/small molecule interactions are also investigated using molecular dynamics simulations.

"Address: Balat Orphanage" is dedicated to the history of a place of care that played a pivotal role for Istanbul's Armenian community over the course of nearly two centuries: the Khorenyan School and Orphanage in the neighbourhood of Balat, which closed its gates in the late 1970s. As they trace the Khorenyan’s social and cultural memory, co-authors Tigran Amiryan and Arsen Abrahamyan reflect on the distinctive position of Armenian educational institutions in the Ottoman Empire and later in the Republic of Turkey. In exploring the intertwined processes of forgetting and remembrance, they offer intriguing insights into a rich trove of unpublished archival material that documents community life before, during, and after the Armenian Genocide.

Haemaphysalis longicornis is a parthenogenetic three-host tick that has expanded from East Asia into Australasia and the Americas, where it poses increasing veterinary and public-health concern. Yet, laboratory research has been constrained partly by the absence of a reliable artificial feeding system. Here, we establish and optimise an artificial, host-free in vitro feeding platform for adult H. longicornis, utilising a thin silicone membrane that overcomes the species’ short hypostome and limited mouthpart mobility. Across six independent experiments using field-collected parthenogenetic adult females from Australia, 67 % (35/52) of ticks attached and 74.3 % (26/35) engorged, achieving a mean engorgement weight of 161 mg (range: 44.8–275 mg), a mean egg mass of 67 mg (11.4–137 mg) and mean bloodmeal-to-egg conversion efficiency of 40 % (range: 16.7–59.9 %). All engorged females oviposited and produced viable larvae, with egg hatchability exceeding 92 % (mean ∼98 %) and engorgement weight strongly associating with fecundity (r = 0.82). Feeding was completed within 2–7 days, comparable to, or shorter than, feeding on live hosts; hair extract treatment did not enhance feeding or reproductive performance. This host-free system essentially replicates natural feeding performance under controlled laboratory conditions and supports the complete reproductive cycle of adult H. longicornis without an animal host. It provides a reproducible and ethical platform for acaricide and vaccine discovery and studies of tick physiology and pathogen–vector interactions, establishing a foundation for standardised, scalable and welfare-compliant tick research within a One Health framework.

Soil health is fundamental in supporting plant diversity and productivity. In turn, a species-rich plant community enhances soil functions and is crucial in sustainable ecosystem management. However, soil degradation increases globally, raising the need for soil restoration. This study aims to test whether improving soil properties through multiple soil amendments promotes a species-rich plant community. We find that the diversity of amendments drives the changes in plant community composition, enhancing species richness, increasing herb and legume biomass, while reducing grass biomass. However, modifications in soil properties, such as water stable aggregates, water holding capacity and soil pH, are influenced by the number of amendments. Aligned with our findings, we observe that greater dissimilarity between restoration amendments results in more synergistic interactions for total above- and below-ground biomass. Our work emphasizes the mechanistic interactions of multiple soil amendments, providing actionable approach to enhance soil multifunctionality and support more targeted restoration strategies.

Background: Anthurium is the largest genus within Araceae, notorious for its diverse spathe coloration, which plays a key role in taxonomy and horticulture. Dark purple to black spathed species are uncommon and highly valued but remain understudied, particularly in Central America.

Question: Does the morphologically distinct population of Anthurium from the Ngäbe-Buglé region of Panama represent an undescribed species and how does it differ from other closely morphologically related taxa within the genus?

Studied species: Anthurium, Anthurium paradoxum.

Study site and dates: Comarca Ngäbe-Buglé, Panama, January and February 2023.

Methods: We prepared herbarium specimens from natural populations and morphological measurements were taken from living plants and herbarium specimens.

Results: We describe Anthurium paradoxum O. Ortiz & M. Cedeño, a new species from the humid lowland forests of Panama, distinguished by its deflexed spadices and striking black-purple spathes. Known only from a single locality on the Caribbean slope, this species occupies secondary forest habitat threatened by ongoing degradation and fragmentation.

Conclusions: Given its highly restricted distribution and continuing habitat loss, we classify A. paradoxum as Critically Endangered, according to the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. This discovery highlights the critical need for continued taxonomic research and conservation efforts in Neotropical ecosystems.

We introduce a general corner transfer matrix renormalization group algorithm tailored to projected entangled-pair states on the triangular lattice. By integrating automatic differentiation, our approach enables direct variational energy minimization on this lattice geometry. In contrast to conventional approaches that map the triangular lattice onto a square lattice with diagonal next-nearest-neighbor interactions, our native formulation yields improved variational results at the same bond dimension. This improvement stems from a more faithful and physically informed representation of the entanglement structure in the tensor network and an increased number of variational parameters. We apply our method to the antiferromagnetic nearest-neighbor Heisenberg model on the triangular and kagome lattice, and benchmark our results against previous numerical studies.

Objective

Thyroid hormones (TH) are well-known regulators of the immune system. However, the precise immunomodulatory mechanisms of TH action in immune cells remain elusive. In a previous study, an essential role of the TH receptor α (TRα) in regulatory T cell (Treg) immunity was demonstrated, affecting Treg activation at steady state. The present study therefore aimed to unravel the biological relevance of altered TRα action in protective immune responses during disease.

Methods

To assess the role of TRα action in immune responses, especially T cell responses, during disease, different TRα signaling mouse models (TRαKO, complete lack of TRα signaling; TRαGS, lack of canonical signaling) were challenged with influenza virus A/PR8/34, and in-depth immune phenotyping was performed.

Results

Upon influenza virus infection, TRαGS mice, which lack canonical TRα signaling, showed prolonged survival and reduced disease severity, correlating with enhanced anti-inflammatory Treg and decreased pro-inflammatory CD4 and CD8 T cell responses. The loss of TRα action in TRαKO mice was related to elevated viral titers upon influenza virus infection, which correlated with increased inflammatory monocyte responses early during infection.

Conclusion

The present study demonstrates a complex role of TRα signaling in protective immune responses during disease, with distinct effects on innate and adaptive immune cells. By exploring the understudied link between the endocrine and immune systems, this study provides novel evidence for the role of TH as modulators of immunity.

We present an isostructural series of cerium(IV) amidinate complexes with halide co-ligands ranging from fluoride to iodide. Different routes are presented to access these valuable species, including the use of various oxidants such as the trichloride salt [NEt3Me][Cl3] or the tribromide salt [NMe3Ph][Br3]. In addition, we present the syntheses of rare triflate and cationic cerium(IV) complexes and first insights into the salt metathesis reactivity using (thio-)cyanates and azides are given.

Fluids released from subducting hydrated rocks influence volcanism, tectonics, and geochemical cycling, but the mechanisms of fluid escape in subduction zones remain poorly understood. We address this issue by investigating the Erro-Tobbio meta-serpentinites (ET-MS), Italy, exhumed serpentinite rocks that preserve extensive dehydration vein networks formed by the porosity-generating breakdown of antigorite and brucite. We characterized the structure and morphology of these self-organized vein networks and evaluated their hydrodynamic properties using a novel approach. Specifically, we combined X-ray tomography and drone imagery with generative machine learning, electron microscopy, and equilibrium thermodynamics to model and analyze fluid pathways in the ET-MS. In both natural and simulated samples, these dehydration vein networks act as efficient drainage systems, enabling rapid fluid percolation even at porosities below 1%. The maximum network permeability is , several orders of magnitude higher than that of intact serpentinite. Fe-rich olivine and monticellite occur alongside relict brucite and magnetite in these veins. This assemblage indicates that the high permeability arises from porosity localized along brucite- and magnetite-rich veins, where infiltration of reducing fluids enhanced dehydration reactions. These findings demonstrate that serpentinite dehydration in subduction zones can produce flow-optimized vein structures that efficiently channel fluids at low porosity, potentially influencing fluid migration on local to regional scales before widespread dehydration occurs.

Background

Refugees, including Syrians, exhibit higher rates of posttraumatic mental disorders than non-refugee populations, partly due to traumatic events and stressors before, during, and after displacement. However, differences in symptom load cannot solely be attributed to being a refugee, as comparison groups vary in other characteristics, such as country of residence and origin. Using a cross-country comparative design, the present study examined mental health outcomes associated with being a refugee by contrasting Syrian refugees with Syrian residents.

Methods

Syrians residing in Syria (SRS) were compared with Syrian refugees in Germany (RSG) and Turkey (RST) regarding posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5), depression (using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)), and traumatic event exposure (using a curated list of traumatic events). Participants (n = 689 total, n = 236 SRS, n = 254 RSG, n = 199 RST) were recruited from an open-label dissemination study between 2021 and 2024. Prevalence rates and trauma exposure were compared between groups, and mediation models examined trauma exposure as a potential mechanism underlying group differences, adjusting for employment, education, family status, age, and gender.

Results

Prevalence rates were calculated for depression (SRS: 90%, RSG: 91%, RST: 86%) and PTSD (SRS: 75%, RSG: 81%, RST: 72%), with no significant differences between refugees and Syrian residents. However, both refugee groups reported significantly more trauma load (SRS vs. RSG: t = -5.94, p < 0.001; SRS vs. RST: t = -4.87, p < 0.001). Mediation models indicated that trauma load partly explained existing differences in mental health outcomes between refugees and Syrian residents (Indirect effects - SRS vs. RSG for PTSD: β = 0.040, 95% CI [0.015, 0.065], p = 0.002; SRS vs. RST for depression: β = 0.028, 95% CI [0.003, 0.053], p < 0.03; SRS vs. RST for PTSD: β = 0.059, 95% CI [0.028, 0.090], p < 0.001).

Conclusion

PTSD and depression rates did not differ between refugees and Syrian residents from Syria, emphasizing the high mental health symptom burden in treatment-seeking Syrians regardless of their country of residence. Notably, though trauma exposure was higher among refugees and explained existing differences in symptom load, underscoring the need for psychosocial support across host countries.

Tropical reefs are under rapid decline owing to a combination of impacts, such as pollution, overfishing and climate change. Coral loss has been overlooked in the southwestern Atlantic turbid-zone reefs, prompting a climate change refugia hypothesis that was largely based on the region's relatively low bleaching levels and stable total coral cover. Here, using a novel functional classification, we examine coral reef cover dynamics in Abrolhos, the southwestern Atlantic’s largest reef complex. Monitoring was carried out over 18 years (2006–2023) and across three heatwaves. Results show insidious shifts in coral assemblages, including the collapse of branching corals and the replacement of previously dominant massive endemic forms by fast-growing, small and typically brooding species. Unexpectedly, coral decline occurred regardless of protection levels and herbivorous fish biomass. Macroalgae declined alongside corals, albeit with higher spatial heterogeneity. These trends signal a loss of structural complexity and ecological functions, highlighting the need for robust sampling design for long-term monitoring, improved environmental licensing to reduce pollution and sedimentation near coral reefs, and effective climate policy to address greenhouse gas emissions.

Although there has been increasing research attention to value-based selling, customer success management, and key account management over the last decade, these concepts have largely been explored in independent streams of literature. As a result, the boundaries and relationships between these customer management approaches remain blurred, and their implementation in business practice often leads to unclear responsibilities and conflicts across organizational units, which may adversely affect customer satisfaction and loyalty. Drawing on recent conceptualizations of customer-perceived value in business markets that build an overarching goal shared by value-based selling, customer success management, and key account management, this article unravels the existing conceptual understandings of these approaches at the specific activity level. We develop an integrated conceptual model that not only articulates the three approaches' conceptual distinctions but also illuminates their interrelationships and complementarities. This study contributes theoretical insights, offers actionable management implications, and identifies promising avenues for future research.

To study time-resolved electric currents through molecular electronic systems, it is common to use real-time time-dependent functional theory, non-equilibrium Green’s function, or the driven Liouville–von Neumann method, among others. These approaches are based either on the one-electron density or on the one-electron density matrix theory, and attempts to treat electron transport from a many-electron perspective are few and far apart. In this contribution, we take the first step toward describing charge transport through a molecular nanojunction as a stochastic many-electron dynamics treated as a piecewise deterministic process. Stochastic methods have previously been employed to describe various electrodynamical processes. Here, we employ an open-system time-dependent configuration interaction ansatz with a resolution-of-identity Hamiltonian to describe the motion of electrons and holes through the nanojunction subject to interaction with open boundary conditions. The absorption of charge carriers into reservoir states is described using Lindblad operators to simulate the conductance behavior in real time. Incoming charge carriers are described as bias-dependent excitations that create electron–hole pairs localized at the junction. To test the method, we use a quinone/hydroquinone nanojunction as a toy problem, exhibiting a marked change in conduction due to quantum interferences.

Pseudo-heterodyne scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (sSNOM) is applied in the mid-infrared region to detect the chemical composition of biomolecules on the nanoscale. However, the application of sSNOM in molecular biology has been limited to static images in air. Recently, bottom illumination sSNOM (BI-sSNOM) was developed for operation in water. Yet, the scan rate of sSNOM remains a bottleneck to record protein structural changes in aqueous solution on the seconds time scale. We designed an optical and mechanical system consisting of a separate scan high-speed atomic force microscope (HS-AFM) coupled to the BI-sSNOM optics. The designed AFM scanner has a mechanical bandwidth of ca 70 kHz along the Z-axis, and ca 6 kHz along the XY-axis, equivalent to the sample scanning HS-AFM. The AFM performance is demonstrated by imaging actin filaments. The optical design is validated by sSNOM experiments on purple membranes and microtubules.