A cryogenic torsion balance using a liquid-cryogen free, ultra-low vibration cryostat.

We describe a liquid-cryogen free cryostat with ultra-low vibration levels, which allows for continuous operation of a torsion balance at cryogenic temperatures. The apparatus uses a commercially available two-stage pulse-tube cooler and passive vibration isolation. The torsion balance exhibits torque noise levels lower than room temperature thermal noise by a factor of about four in the frequency range of 3-10 mHz, limited by residual seismic motion and by radiative heating of the pendulum body. In addition to lowering thermal noise below room-temperature limits, the low-temperature environment enables novel torsion balance experiments. Currently, the maximum duration of a continuous measurement run is limited by accumulation of cryogenic surface contamination on the optical elements inside the cryostat.

[Making decisions in times of a pandemic : A qualitative study on perspectives of managers of long-term care facilities]. / Entscheidungen treffen in Pandemiezeiten : Eine qualitative Studie zu Perspektiven von Leitungspersonen der stationären Langzeitpflege.

BACKGROUND: In the spring of 2020 during the first wave of the pandemic an above-average number of residents and staff in nursing homes fell ill and accounted for the highest number of incidences. Due to the pandemic, managers in nursing homes had to make new decisions on a daily basis as well as interpret and integrate decisions made by higher level authorities. AIM OF THE STUDY: The aim was to describe the decisions that had to be made by the managers of nursing homes in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and related consequences. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A qualitative multicentre cross-sectional design was chosen. Data collection was conducted with semi-structured telephone interviews. The recorded audio data were transcribed, analyzed using the framework analysis method and reflected in peer debriefings. RESULTS: A total of 78 interviews were conducted in 43 nursing homes and 3 main themes with 10 subthemes emerged: decisions about social participation, decisions on quarantine and isolation and staff adjustments. DISCUSSION: Clearer information and directives for the implementation of measures are needed, e.g. through standardized guidelines nationwide. Additionally, public health departments should play a stronger and more responsible role in a pandemic situation. The consequences of their decisions were hardly foreseeable for the managers and were marked by uncertainty. Responsibilities for and consequences of pandemic-related decisions should be further evaluated to empower managers in times of crises.

Development of a shared decision-making intervention to improve drug safety and to reduce polypharmacy in frail elderly patients living at home.

Objectives: For patients with geriatric frailty, reducing inappropriate medication is an important goal to improve patient safety in primary care. GP-side barriers include knowledge gaps, legal concerns, and lack of communication between the actors involved. The aim was to develop a multi-faceted intervention to facilitate deprescribing and shared prioritisation among frail elderlies with polypharmacy living at home. Methods: Mixed methods study including: 1) scoping review on family conferences, expert panels; 2) group discussions with GPs, mapping of needs and challenges in Primary Care; 3) workshops and expert interviews with GPs, patient advocates, researchers as a basis for a theoretical intervention model; 4) piloting. Results: A major challenge for GPs is to conduct a productive discussion with patients and family cares on deprescribing and drug safety. A guideline for a structured family conference with a medication check and geriatric assessment was developed and proved to be feasible in the pilot study. Conclusion: The intervention developed to facilitate deprescribing and shared prioritisation of drug therapy based on family conferences seems suitable to be tested in a subsequent cRCT. Innovation: Adapting family conferences to primary care for frail patients with polypharmacy.

Sweet Corn Sentinel Monitoring for Lepidopteran Field-Evolved Resistance to Bt Toxins.

As part of an insect resistance management plan to preserve Bt transgenic technology, annual monitoring of target pests is mandated to detect susceptibility changes to Bt toxins. Currently Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) monitoring involves investigating unexpected injury in Bt crop fields and collecting larvae from non-Bt host plants for laboratory diet bioassays to determine mortality responses to diagnostic concentrations of Bt toxins. To date, this monitoring approach has not detected any significant change from the known range of baseline susceptibility to Bt toxins, yet practical field-evolved resistance in H. zea populations and numerous occurrences of unexpected injury occur in Bt crops. In this study, we implemented a network of 73 sentinel sweet corn trials, spanning 16 U.S. states and 4 Canadian provinces, for monitoring changes in H. zea susceptibility to Cry and Vip3A toxins by measuring differences in ear damage and larval infestations between isogenic pairs of non-Bt and Bt hybrids over three years. This approach can monitor susceptibility changes and regional differences in other ear-feeding lepidopteran pests. Temporal changes in the field efficacy of each toxin were evidenced by comparing our current results with earlier published studies, including baseline data for each Bt trait when first commercialized. Changes in amount of ear damage showed significant increases in H. zea resistance to Cry toxins and possibly lower susceptibility to Vip3a. Our findings demonstrate that the sentinel plot approach as an in-field screen can effectively monitor phenotypic resistance and document field-evolved resistance in target pest populations, improving resistance monitoring for Bt crops.

Crop production in the USA is frequently limited by a lack of pollinators.

Most of the world's crops depend on pollinators, so declines in both managed and wild bees raise concerns about food security. However, the degree to which insect pollination is actually limiting current crop production is poorly understood, as is the role of wild species (as opposed to managed honeybees) in pollinating crops, particularly in intensive production areas. We established a nationwide study to assess the extent of pollinator limitation in seven crops at 131 locations situated across major crop-producing areas of the USA. We found that five out of seven crops showed evidence of pollinator limitation. Wild bees and honeybees provided comparable amounts of pollination for most crops, even in agriculturally intensive regions. We estimated the nationwide annual production value of wild pollinators to the seven crops we studied at over $1.5 billion; the value of wild bee pollination of all pollinator-dependent crops would be much greater. Our findings show that pollinator declines could translate directly into decreased yields or production for most of the crops studied, and that wild species contribute substantially to pollination of most study crops in major crop-producing regions.

New Test of the Gravitational 1/r

We tested the gravitational 1/r^{2} law using a stationary torsion-balance detector and a rotating attractor containing test bodies with both 18-fold and 120-fold azimuthal symmetries that simultaneously tests the 1/r^{2} law at two different length scales. We took data at detector-attractor separations between 52 µm and 3.0 mm. Newtonian gravity gave an excellent fit to our data, limiting with 95% confidence any gravitational-strength Yukawa interactions to ranges <38.6 µm.

Endomyocardial biopsies in the diagnosis of myocardial involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus.

BACKGROUND: Endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is considered the gold standard for diagnosing myocardial involvement in most inflammatory conditions, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, EMBs are rarely performed, and most of the myocardial histopathology reports in SLE consist of postmortem data. We therefore sought to describe the histopathologic findings of contemporary EMBs in SLE performed in clinical practice. METHODS: A retrospective review of histopathology reports from SLE patients who underwent EMB from 1994 to 2017 was performed. A total of 41 SLE patients had cardiac pathology reports. Of these, 11 histopathology reports were EMBs, and the remaining were valvular specimens. RESULTS: A total of 11 SLE EMBs were reviewed. It was found that 45% of the patients had hypertension, 27% had coronary artery disease, 9% had hyperlipidemia, and 36% had end-stage renal disease. None had diabetes or smoked. The mean left ventricular ejection fraction was 37%. On histopathology, 10 had mild interstitial fibrosis, 9 had myocyte hypertrophy, 3 had organized blood clots, and 3 had a mild infiltration of lymphocytes and macrophages without clear evidence of myocarditis. None had vasculitis, endocarditis, ischemia, amyloid deposition, or lamellar or curvilinear inclusions. CONCLUSION: EMBs are rarely performed in SLE. In this case series, nonspecific interstitial fibrosis and myocyte hypertrophy were the most common findings, suggesting EMBs have limited value in the diagnosis of cardiac involvement in SLE and rather rule out competing conditions. These data support the need for diagnostic methods with high sensitivity and specificity for SLE heart disease.

Wild Bee Visitation Rates Exceed Pollination Thresholds in Commercial Cucurbita Agroecosystems.

Wild bees supply sufficient pollination in Cucurbita agroecosystems in certain settings; however, some growers continue to stock fields with managed pollinators due to uncertainties of temporal and spatial variation on pollination services supplied by wild bees. Here, we evaluate wild bee pollination activity in wholesale, commercial pumpkin fields over 3 yr. We identified 37 species of bees foraging in commercial pumpkin fields. Honey bees (Apis mellifera L. [Hymenoptera: Apidae]), squash bees (Eucera (Peponapis) Say, Dorchin [Hymenoptera: Apidae]), and bumble bees (Bombus spp., primarily B. impatiens Cresson [Hymenoptera: Apidae]) were the most active pollinator taxa, responsible for over 95% of all pollination visits. Preference for female flowers decreased as distance from field edge increased for several bee taxa. Visitation rates from one key pollinator was negatively affected by field size. Visitation rates for multiple taxa exhibited a curvilinear response as the growing season progressed and responded positively to increasing floral density. We synthesized existing literature to estimate minimum 'pollination thresholds' per taxa and determined that each of the most active pollinator taxa exceeded these thresholds independently. Under current conditions, renting honey bee hives may be superfluous in this system. These results can aid growers when executing pollination management strategies and further highlights the importance of monitoring and conserving wild pollinator populations.

Potential biological control of Erwinia tracheiphila by internal alimentary canal interactions in Acalymma vittatum with Pseudomonas fluorescens.

AIMS: We aim to determine if Pseudomonas fluorescens is a viable biological control for Erwinia tracheiphila within the insect vector, Acalymma vittatum. METHODS AND RESULTS: Pseudomonas fluorescens secreted fluorescein and inhibited growth of E. tracheiphila in disc diffusion assays. To determine if this antagonism was conserved within the insect vector, we performed in vivo assays by orally injecting beetles with bacterial treatments and fluorescent in situ hybridization to determine bacterial presence within the alimentary canal. CONCLUSIONS: Pseudomonas fluorescens inhibited the growth of E. tracheiphila on a nutrient-limiting medium. In situ experiments demonstrated that P. fluorescens is maintained within the alimentary canal of the beetle for at least 4 days, and co-occurred with E. tracheiphila. When beetles were first presented with Pseudomonas and then challenged with E. tracheiphila, E. tracheiphila was not recovered via FISH after 4 days. These data suggest that P. fluorescens has potential as a biological control agent to limit E. tracheiphila within the insect vector. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This is a novel approach for controlling E. tracheiphila that has the potential to decrease reliance on insecticides, providing a safer environment for pollinators and growers.

[A survey of Local Physicians and Psychotherapists on Cooperation in Regional Networks for Early Child Interventions in Saxony-Anhalt]. / Befragung von niedergelassenen Ärzten/innen und Psychotherapeuten/innen zur Kooperation in regionalen Netzwerken der Frühen Hilfen in Sachsen-Anhalt.

BACKGROUND: Early childhood interventions positively contribute to health related child development. For these interventions, networks are a necessary prerequisite as they promote interdisciplinary and interprofessional cooperation. This holds especially true for the integration of health system protagonists. METHODS: In a cross-sectional survey local paediatrists, gynaecologists, general practitioners, and psychotherapists were asked about their knowledge, experiences, desires, and reservations regarding cooperation in early childhood intervention networks. RESULTS: 64 out of 1747 (3.7%) eligible clinicians answered the survey. On average they estimated that 10.1% of the families they are treating would benefit from early childhood interventions. Participants rated themselves as competent to offer appropriate early childhood interventions. The youth welfare service was judged as the most important institution for their own professional practice by 84.4%. Additionally to an applicable agenda, a fair group moderation of network meetings was seen as a substantial requirement in order to take part in network meetings. CONCLUSION: Health professionals are important protagonists in early childhood interventions. Clinicians should assess relevant problems in families and offer appropriate support on a regular basis. Alongside clearly defined regional contacts, interprofessional continuing education seems mandatory.

[Perspectives on advance directives among German intensive care physicians in leading positions]. / Umgang mit Patientenverfügungen in Deutschland.

INTRODUCTION: Six years after introduction of a law for advance directives (AD) in 2009, AD are still discussed controversially. For the first time in Germany, this study investigates intensive care physicians' perspectives on implementation of AD, and corresponding experience of ethical issues. METHODS: A standardized questionnaire was sent to German hospitals with > 300 beds and anesthesiologist-led intensive care units. The questionnaire was based on results of a previous qualitative study and was intended to be answered by one leading intensive care physician per hospital. RESULTS: N = 222/299 (74.2 % response) physicians answered the survey. Despite a number of reported problems regarding the implementation of AD, 70.6 % (n = 154/218) rated AD generally as helpful. 86.5 % (n = 185/214) would prefer a more goal-oriented approach to an intervention-oriented approach to formulate AD. Furthermore 95.9 % (n = 207/216) plead for qualified professional counseling for intensive care topics in AD. Acceptance for interventions that equal termination of treatment can be perceived. Terminal extubation in correspondence with the patient's will is done in 79.4 % (n = 173/218) of hospitals, however 54.8 % (n = 113/206) of the physicians experience terminal extubations as burdening. DISCUSSION: Supporting concepts and measures will be necessary in order to prepare valid AD and to effectively improve implementation in intensive care practice.

Horticultural Production Systems Influence Ground Beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) Distribution and Diversity in Cucurbits.

Commercial cucurbit production typically involves agriculturally intensive practices, with fields prepared using conventional tillage, plasticulture, and chemically based pest management. Conservation-based management options are limited. In this study, we consider two alternative strategies, strip tillage and the use of row covers. We compare their impact on the beneficial carabid beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) community in melons and squash, following conventional or organic systems, over two years. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that soil management system (strip tillage versus plasticulture) was the primary variable influencing carabid distribution; row cover was a less important factor. The response to soil management was species dependent. Some dominant species, such as Harpalus pensylvanicus DeGeer, demonstrated no preference for a particular soil treatment. For others, including the tiger beetle, Cicindela punctulata Olivier, and a slug predator, Chlaenius tricolor Dejean, activity-density was higher in strip-tillage production systems. Our analysis suggested that strip-tillage production systems support a richer, more diverse carabid community. These results demonstrate that even within intensive annual horticultural systems, production practices can play a critical role in shaping the beneficial arthropod community, potentially encouraging or limiting ecosystem services.

Modeling seasonal migration of fall armyworm moths.

Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith), is a highly mobile insect pest of a wide range of host crops. However, this pest of tropical origin cannot survive extended periods of freezing temperature but must migrate northward each spring if it is to re-infest cropping areas in temperate regions. The northward limit of the winter-breeding region for North America extends to southern regions of Texas and Florida, but infestations are regularly reported as far north as Québec and Ontario provinces in Canada by the end of summer. Recent genetic analyses have characterized migratory pathways from these winter-breeding regions, but knowledge is lacking on the atmosphere's role in influencing the timing, distance, and direction of migratory flights. The Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model was used to simulate migratory flight of fall armyworm moths from distinct winter-breeding source areas. Model simulations identified regions of dominant immigration from the Florida and Texas source areas and overlapping immigrant populations in the Alabama-Georgia and Pennsylvania-Mid-Atlantic regions. This simulated migratory pattern corroborates a previous migratory map based on the distribution of fall armyworm haplotype profiles. We found a significant regression between the simulated first week of moth immigration and first week of moth capture (for locations which captured ≥ 10 moths), which on average indicated that the model simulated first immigration 2 weeks before first captures in pheromone traps. The results contribute to knowledge of fall armyworm population ecology on a continental scale and will aid in the prediction and interpretation of inter-annual variability of insect migration patterns including those in response to climatic change and adoption rates of transgenic cultivars.

Sunflower as a Potential Trap Crop of Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in Pepper Fields.

The brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål), feeds on a variety of fruits and vegetables, and is an economically important invasive hemipteran pest. Trap cropping of H. halys was examined at the Pennsylvania State University Southeast Agriculture Research and Extension Center (SEAREC) in Lancaster Co., PA, from 2012 to 2013, with sunflowers used as a trap crop to protect bell pepper. H. halys were observed frequently on sunflowers planted surrounding the pepper field, and in both years of this experiment significantly more H. halys were observed in sunflowers than peppers. Both adults and nymphs were observed with equal frequency, with higher numbers of both observed in September. A 2:1 ratio of females to males was observed throughout both years. While sunflowers were attractive to H. halys, no difference in fruit damage was observed in peppers surrounded by the sunflower trap crop versus those peppers surrounded by peppers. While sunflowers present an interesting potential trap crop for H. halys, future research is needed to clarify the feasibility of this crop protection technique.

Examining shifts in Carabidae assemblages across a forest-agriculture ecotone.

Northeastern U.S. farms are often situated adjacent to forestland due to the heterogeneous nature of the landscape. We investigated how forested areas influence Carabidae diversity within nearby crop fields by establishing transects of pitfall traps. Trapping extended across a forest-agriculture ecotone consisting of maize, an intermediate mowed grass margin, and a forest edge. Carabidae diversity was compared among the three habitats, and community and population dynamics were assessed along the transect. We used a principal response curve to examine and visualize community change across a spatial gradient. The highest levels of richness and evenness were observed in the forest community, and carabid assemblages shifted significantly across the ecotone, especially at the forest-grass interface. Despite strong ecotone effects, population distributions showed that some species were found in all three habitats and seemed to thrive at the ecotone. Based on similarity indices, carabid assemblages collected in maize adjacent to forest differed from carabid assemblages in maize not adjacent to forest. We conclude that forest carabid assemblages exhibit high degrees of dissimilarity with those found in agricultural fields and forested areas should thus be retained in agricultural landscapes to increase biodiversity at the landscape scale. However, ecotone species found at forest edges can still noticeably influence carabid community composition within neighboring agricultural fields. Further studies should determine how these shifts in carabid assemblages influence agroecosystem services in relation to ecosystem services observed in fields embedded in an agricultural matrix.

CD22 ligation inhibits downstream B cell receptor signaling and Ca(2+) flux upon activation.

OBJECTIVE: CD22 is a surface molecule exclusively expressed on B cells that regulates adhesion and B cell receptor (BCR) signaling as an inhibitory coreceptor of the BCR. Central downstream signaling molecules that are activated upon BCR engagement include spleen tyrosine kinase (Syk) and, subsequently, phospholipase Cγ2 (PLCγ2), which results in calcium (Ca(2+)) mobilization. The humanized anti-CD22 monoclonal antibody epratuzumab is currently being tested in clinical trials. This study was undertaken to determine the potential mechanism by which this drug regulates B cell activation. METHODS: Purified B cells were preincubated with epratuzumab, and the colocalization of CD22 and CD79α, without BCR engagement, was assessed by confocal microscopy. The phosphorylation of Syk (Y348, Y352) and PLCγ2 (Y759) as well as the Ca(2+) flux in the cells were analyzed by flow cytometry upon stimulation of the BCR and/or Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR-9). The influence of CD22 ligation on BCR signaling was assessed by pretreating the cells with epratuzumab or F(ab')(2) fragment of epratuzumab, in comparison with control cells (medium alone or isotype-matched IgG1). RESULTS: Epratuzumab induced colocalization of CD22 and components of the BCR independent of BCR engagement, and also reduced intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization and diminished the phosphorylation of Syk and PLCγ2 after BCR stimulation in vitro. Inhibition of kinase phosphorylation was demonstrated in both CD27- and CD27+ B cells, and this appeared to be independent of Fc receptor signaling. Preactivation of the cells via the stimulation of TLR-9 did not circumvent the inhibitory effect of epratuzumab on BCR signaling. CONCLUSION: These findings are consistent with the concept of targeting CD22 to raise the threshold of BCR activation, which could offer therapeutic benefit in patients with autoimmune diseases.

Areawide suppression of European corn borer with Bt maize reaps savings to non-Bt maize growers.

Transgenic maize engineered to express insecticidal proteins from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) has become widely adopted in U.S. agriculture. In 2009, Bt maize was planted on more than 22.2 million hectares, constituting 63% of the U.S. crop. Using statistical analysis of per capita growth rate estimates, we found that areawide suppression of the primary pest Ostrinia nubilalis (European corn borer) is associated with Bt maize use. Cumulative benefits over 14 years are an estimated $3.2 billion for maize growers in Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, with more than $2.4 billion of this total accruing to non-Bt maize growers. Comparable estimates for Iowa and Nebraska are $3.6 billion in total, with $1.9 billion for non-Bt maize growers. These results affirm theoretical predictions of pest population suppression and highlight economic incentives for growers to maintain non-Bt maize refugia for sustainable insect resistance management.