Article
Education & Educational Research
Cole Entress
Summary: Biology teachers aim to help students see the living world in new ways, but the current biology curriculum lacks productive connection with the everyday living world students encounter. Existing biology teacher education focuses on abstract molecular models of life, neglecting direct encounters with living organisms. This paper argues for a renewed attention to local field study, natural history, and model organism investigations to unlock the transformative potential of biology education.
SCIENCE & EDUCATION
(2022)
Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Christopher A. Lamb, Aamir Saifuddin, Nick Powell, Florian Rieder
Summary: Inflammatory bowel disease exhibits significant interindividual heterogeneity, and there is a need to identify accurate methods for predicting treatment response and disease course. Precision medicine strategies offer the potential to tailor treatments to individual patient needs, but further research and international cooperation are necessary to identify and validate relevant biomarkers.
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ryoichiro Kageyama
Summary: The discovery of a gene that mediates periodic segmentation of the developing backbone of vertebrate embryos has shed light on how the pace of development is controlled by a species-specific molecular clock rhythm.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Scott Hotaling, Joanna L. Kelley, Paul B. Frandsen
Summary: The field of animal genome science has rapidly progressed in recent years, with significant taxonomic disparities, overrepresentation of vertebrates, and underrepresentation of arthropods being highlighted. The use of long-read sequencing has greatly improved assembly quality, but gene annotations are still lacking for many taxa. While there is a growing pool of researchers participating in animal genome science globally, institutions in the Global North continue to dominate the field.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Matthew Cobb, Nathaniel Comfort
Summary: Franklin was not a victim but an equal player in unraveling the DNA double helix, as revealed by an overlooked letter and an unpublished news article, both from 1953.
Article
Hematology
Susan L. Slager, Sameer A. Parikh, Sara J. Achenbach, Aaron D. Norman, Kari G. Rabe, Nicholas J. Boddicker, Janet E. Olson, Geffen Kleinstern, Connie E. Lesnick, Timothy G. Call, James R. Cerhan, Celine M. Vachon, Neil E. Kay, Esteban Braggio, Curtis A. Hanson, Tait D. Shanafelt
Summary: Monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (MBL) is a common hematological premalignant condition that is associated with a fourfold increased risk of lymphoid malignancies in individuals with low-count MBL (LC-MBL).
Biographical-Item
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kurt Wuethrich
Summary: Nobel laureate who revolutionized nuclear magnetic resonance.
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
James Mitchell Crow, Leah Tsang
Summary: Leah Tsang works at Australia's oldest museum, helping to bring bird poisoners to justice.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Mirco Plante
Summary: Synthetic biology is an emerging research field that aims to understand, modify, and create new biological entities by adopting a modular and systemic approach. This discipline has generated diverse approaches, bringing together practices and conceptualizations from various disciplines, which can lead to confusion within the field. This manuscript provides an epistemological analysis of synthetic biology to better define its objects of study and specific objectives.
FRONTIERS IN BIOENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Ecology
Michael C. Orr, Mirjam Jakob, Alexandra Harmon-Threatt, Anne-Christine Mupepele
Summary: Compared to research on floral resources, there has been relatively little study on the threats bees face from a nesting-biology perspective. Natural history studies form the foundation of our knowledge on bee nesting, while ecological and artificial experimental studies enable us to extend and test related hypotheses in rigorous frameworks.
BASIC AND APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Jodie Roberts, Kristine Woodward, Adam Kirton, Michael J. Esser
Summary: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is a genetic condition that leads to vascular malformations in the brain, spinal cord, and lungs, resulting in neurologic complications. This case highlights the diagnosis of a brain abscess in a previously healthy 3-year-old boy, which was caused by a pulmonary arteriovenous malformation (PAVM). Screening for PAVM with contrast-enhanced echocardiogram or enhanced CT of the chest should be considered in patients with cryptogenic brain abscess or recurrent embolic stroke of unknown origin.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Akinori Sato, Ryo Asaoka, Shin Tanaka, Koichi Nagura, Yui Tanaka, Rei Arasaki, Kazuyoshi Okawa, Shohei Kitahata, Kentaro Nakamura, Shouko Ikeda, Tatsuya Inoue, Yasuo Yanagi, Maiko Maruyama-Inoue, Kazuaki Kadonosono
Summary: The study aimed to investigate the utility of red channel fundus imaging in detecting ischemic status in eyes with CRVO. Results showed that red channel imaging had higher sensitivity in detecting ischemia compared to color fundus images, especially in non-rubeotic CRVO eyes.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carissa A. Gilliland, Vilas Patel, Ashley C. McCormick, Bradley M. Mackett, Kevin J. Vogel
Summary: Kissing bugs rely on symbiotic relationships with bacteria to compensate for the insufficient B vitamins in vertebrate blood. R. rhodnii is not always found in wild-caught kissing bugs, but it has higher fitness compared to other tested bacteria due to its higher abundance and provision of more B vitamins. The synthesis of B vitamins by symbiont bacteria is necessary but not sufficient for the development and survival of kissing bugs.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ashish Awasthi, Harshita Katiyar, Sumit Rungta, Amar Deep, Vinod Kumar, Shalimar, Ajay Kumar, Prachi Tiwari, Amit Goel
Summary: This study aims to compare the efficacy of 8-week and 12-week treatment of sofosbuvir/velpatasvir in non-cirrhotic patients with chronic HCV infection. The findings will provide insights into whether a shorter treatment duration can improve treatment compliance, reduce cost, and facilitate public health implementation.
Article
Biology
Hongran Li, Yan Peng, Yansong Wang, Bryce Summerhays, Xiaohan Shu, Yumary Vasquez, Hannah Vansant, Christy Grenier, Nicolette Gonzalez, Khyati Kansagra, Ryan Cartmill, Edison Ryoiti Sujii, Ling Meng, Xuguo Zhou, Gabor L. Loevei, John J. Obrycki, Arun Sethuraman, Baoping Li
Summary: This study provides new insights into the invasion processes of the harlequin ladybird into other continents from its native range in Asia. It identifies a population in eastern China as the source of non-native populations and identifies potential adaptive genomic loci related to body color variation, visual perception, and hemolymph synthesis. The study also reveals asymmetric migration, varying population sizes, historical bottlenecks, and different mitochondrial haplotypes between native and non-native populations.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Danilo Urzedo, Simone Pedrini, Daniel L. M. Vieira, Alexandre B. Sampaio, Bruna D. F. Souza, Eduardo Malta Campos-Filho, Fatima C. M. Pina-Rodrigues, Isabel B. Schmidt, Rodrigo G. P. Junqueira, Kingsley Dixon
Summary: The UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration aims to trigger the recovery of ecosystem services and transform structural injustices across the world by including diverse Indigenous and local communities in co-creating robust native seed supply systems. Community-based organizations have developed native seed supply strategies for landscape restoration, drawing on two decades of seed networks in Brazil and emerging Indigenous participation in Australia. Local engagement and equitable participation in social, economic, and environmental benefits are emphasized for achieving large-scale restoration goals.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Wei San Wong, Tim K. Morald, Andrew S. Whiteley, Paul G. Nevill, Robert D. Trengove, Jean W. H. Yong, Kingsley W. Dixon, Justin M. Valliere, Jason C. Stevens, Erik J. Veneklaas
Summary: Mining activities alter critical soil properties for plant establishment. Microbial inoculations can potentially improve vegetation restoration. This study evaluates the feasibility of using commercially available inoculants to enhance plant performance in a non-toxic and infertile mine-waste substrate, finding that water availability has a greater effect on plant growth than inoculation treatments.
LAND DEGRADATION & DEVELOPMENT
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Mieke van der Heyde, Michael Bunce, Kingsley W. Dixon, Kristen Fernandes, Jonathan Majer, Grant Wardell-Johnson, Nicole E. White, Paul Nevill
Summary: Invertebrates play a crucial role in restoration processes, but often overlooked due to their diversity and the difficulties in surveying and identification. DNA metabarcoding is a useful tool to rapidly survey invertebrate communities and understand their interactions with other taxa. This study evaluated the changes in invertebrate communities during mine-site restoration using DNA metabarcoding. It was found that ground-dwelling invertebrates showed clearer restoration signals compared to airborne invertebrates, with the inclusion of plant assays providing additional information about the restoration process.
Article
Agronomy
Justin M. Valliere, Haylee M. D'Agui, Kingsley W. Dixon, Paul G. Nevill, Wei San Wong, Hongtao Zhong, Erik J. Veneklaas
Summary: The study found that soils from native vegetation have a positive impact on plant growth, physiology, and nodulation by N-fixing bacteria, while stockpiled soils have a negative effect on plant performance. This suggests that topsoil storage can affect the biological integrity of soil, with important implications for mine-site restoration.
Article
Ecology
Simone Pedrini, Haylee M. D'Agui, Tiana Arya, Shane Turner, Kingsley W. Dixon
Summary: Native seed underpins the success of most terrestrial restoration efforts globally, but the fragility of the seed supply chain poses a key challenge. A study in Western Australia evaluated seed quality and price for 185 species, suggesting a new pricing method per thousand pure live seeds to increase transparency and information flow in the native seed market.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Belinda Davis, Wei-Han Lim, Hans Lambers, Kingsley W. Dixon, David J. Read
Summary: This study investigates the phosphorus (P) nutrition in green-leaved terrestrial orchid species growing naturally in P-impoverished soils. The findings reveal that these orchids can obtain significant amounts of inorganic P from their fungal symbionts, and the uptake is significantly higher compared to other green-leaved orchids. These results provide support for differences in P acquisition between orchid species and fungal symbionts, and suggest the presence of plant-mediated niche differentiation.
Article
Ecology
Haylee M. D'Agui, Mieke E. van der Heyde, Paul G. Nevill, Mahsa Mousavi-Derazmahalleh, Kingsley W. Dixon, Benjamin Moreira-Grez, Justin M. Valliere
Summary: The functionality of stockpiled topsoils differs from undisturbed native reference topsoils, and measures of soil microbial community composition, soil respiration, and plant growth do not provide consistent assessments of soil functionality. Further research is needed to improve site- and biome-specific topsoil management procedures.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Shane R. Turner, Adam T. Cross, Michael Just, Vern Newton, Simone Pedrini, Sean Tomlinson, Kingsley Dixon
Summary: Restoration seedbanks are crucial for restoring damaged environments globally, but lack of knowledge about seed biology and ecology hampers their effectiveness. Factors such as premature seed collection, low seed quality, and insufficient understanding of seed dormancy and germination requirements can affect the success of seed-based restoration. By adopting best practice principles and improving understanding of seed biology and ecology, restoration seedbanks can deliver immediate and cost-efficient benefits.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Michelle Ward, Ayesha Tulloch, Romola Stewart, Hugh P. Possingham, Sarah Legge, Rachael Gallagher, Erin M. Graham, Darren Southwell, David Keith, Kingsley Dixon, Chuanji Yong, Josie Carwardine, Tim Cronin, April E. Reside, James E. M. Watson
Summary: In the summer of 2019-2020, southern Australia experienced the largest fires on record, damaging the habitat of native species. A large-scale restoration effort is needed to improve degraded species habitat and provide fire-affected species with the opportunity to recover. Decision-makers require information on priority species needs, potential restoration interventions, and priority locations for these interventions. The study shows that restoring a significant portion of the study region would account for a large percentage of current and future habitat for priority species, but would come at a high cost.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Xue Meng Zhou, Kosala Ranathunge, Marion L. Cambridge, Kingsley W. Dixon, Patrick E. Hayes, Miroslav Nikolic, Qi Shen, Hongtao Zhong, Hans Lambers
Summary: The low diversity of tall Eucalyptus forests in southwest Australia can be explained by dominant mycorrhizal species exhibiting a carboxylate-releasing strategy. The tall eucalypts are strong competitors that do not require facilitation, but also do not access organic N.
Article
Ecology
Danilo Urzedo, Simone Pedrini, Clancy Hearps, Kingsley Dixon, Stephen van Leeuwen
Summary: Mining activities cause displacement and disruption to Indigenous socio-cultural relations. Restoration and closure of mines must involve Indigenous Australians and provide enduring benefits. Recognition and dismantling of institutionalized socio-environmental inequalities are necessary for Indigenous engagements with mining restoration supply chains.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Kingsley Dixon, Vanessa MacDonald, Haylee D'Agui
Summary: This special issue compiles research studies conducted by the Australian Research Council Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Mine Site Restoration over the span of 5 years. The studies focused on often overlooked or under-resourced disciplines in the mining industry, including restoration genetics, seed technology, rare species management, and restoration ecophysiology. The research findings also contributed to the development of mining closure policies.
RESTORATION ECOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Kit S. Prendergast, Kinglsey W. Dixon, Philip W. Bateman
Summary: This study reviews the literature on competition between honeybees and Australian native bees and finds that native bees in Australia may be vulnerable to competition with honeybees. However, the data on whether honeybees have negative effects on native bees are inconclusive, suggesting the need for further research. The study proposes various investigations to address the current gaps in knowledge and highlights the importance of understanding the conditions under which honeybees have different effects on native bees.
PACIFIC CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Soil Science
Zefang Shen, Haylee D'Agui, Lewis Walden, Mingxi Zhang, Tsoek Man Yiu, Kingsley Dixon, Paul Nevill, Adam Cross, Mohana Matangulu, Yang Hu, Raphael A. Viscarra Rossel
Summary: Mining can cause disturbances to the soil, but miniaturised spectrometers can accurately estimate soil properties for rehabilitation at a lower cost.
Article
Plant Sciences
B. R. Chandima P. Samarasinghe, K. M. G. Gehan Jayasuriya, A. M. Thilanka A. Gunaratne, Kingsley W. Dixon, Mahesh Senanayaka
Summary: This study compared the seed biology and seedling development traits of two native species and one invasive species in a tropical rainforest habitat in Sri Lanka. The results showed that the invasive species had higher germination and survival rates, which may be the key factor for its successful invasion.