Ongoing Threat Research Articles

Analysis of Pedestrian Behavior for the Optimization of Evacuation Plans in Tall Buildings: Case Study Santiago, Chile

Countries located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, such as Chile, require robust evacuation plans for tall buildings to manage the ongoing threat of natural disasters. This study presents a methodology for developing evacuation plans by conducting pedestrian movement simulations with agents that have a model of their surroundings. This approach allows us to assess different scenarios and choose the best option based on the specific characteristics of the site. The method combines simulation and data analysis, using the Monte Carlo method to improve emergency evacuations. Initially, Pathfinder software was employed to simulate the evacuation of a tall building. This involved modeling pedestrian movements using a multiagent system. These agents were programmed to behave like real pedestrians and make decisions during evacuation scenarios, providing valuable information. The effectiveness of two evacuation strategies was then evaluated using the simulation data. The proposed methodology was validated using a case study. The simulations showed that the best strategy depends on factors such as the distribution of people, the capacity of the exits, and the time available for evacuation. Finally, the model includes a training process that uses virtual reality technology to improve situational awareness.

Anticipating anthropogenic threats in acquiring new protected areas.

Biodiversity continues to decline despite protected area expansion and global conservation commitments. Biodiversity losses occur in existing protected areas, yet common methods used to select protected areas ignore postimplementation threats that reduce effectiveness. We developed a conservation planning framework that considers the ongoing anthropogenic threats within protected areas when selecting sites and the value of planning for costly threat-mitigating activities (i.e., enforcement) at the time of siting decisions. We applied the framework to a set of landscapes that contained the range of possible correlations between species richness and threat. Accounting for threats and implementing enforcement activities increased benefits from protected areas without increasing budgets. Threat information was valuable in conserving more species per spending level even without enforcement, especially on landscapes with randomly distributed threats. Benefits from including threat information and enforcement were greatest when human threats peaked in areas of high species richness and were lowest where human threats were negatively associated with species richness. Because acquiring information on threats and using threat-mitigating activities are costly, our findings can guide decision-makers regarding the settings in which to pursue these planning steps.

Conservation, domestication and breeding of Eucalyptus benthamii, a threatened, cold-tolerant subtropical species with a restricted genetic base and lot of potential

Eucalyptus benthamii is a fast-growing eucalypt with excellent potential as a pulp and biomass crop in subtropical areas that are subject to occasional cold snaps. It is among the most frost-tolerant of fast-growing eucalypts and has been deployed commercially in selected regions of North and South America. Several relatively low-input domestication and breeding programs are underway. The species has a restricted natural range along the Nepean River system to the west of Sydney, Australia, and is facing ongoing threat due to fragmentation caused by agricultural developments, urban sprawl and dam construction. Two main subpopulations have been delineated (Nepean and Kedumba), with most of the world’s breeding populations predominantly based on a restricted sample of open-pollinated families from Kedumba. Two challenges are discussed. Firstly, conservation of the species is a high priority, made difficult in the less-sampled Nepean subpopulation by poor seed set, inbreeding and interspecific hybridization. Secondly, for ongoing genetic gain to be made, broadening the genetic base in breeding programs is a high priority. To tackle the first challenge, ex situ and circa situm conservation interventions are underway. Though technically challenging, this should eventually lead to more breeding material becoming available. International collaboration will be a key determinant of future success in meeting these challenges.

Marburg virus outbreak in Tanzania: A threat to global health security

AbstractThe current Marburg virus (MARV) outbreak in Tanzania served as a stark reminder of the ongoing threat posed by emerging infectious diseases and the urgent need for global health security. The Tanzanian Ministry of Health (MoH) officially declared the outbreak on March 21, 2023. Eight cases in all, five of which included fatalities, have been reported in the country at present. The virus is a member of the Filoviridae family closely related to the widely known Ebola virus. Similar to other filoviruses, MARV causes acute and lethal hemorrhagic fever in both human and nonhuman primates with high case fatality rates ranging from 24% to 90%. The outbreak has highlighted the need for improved disease surveillance and response systems, as well as increased funding for research into emerging infectious diseases. The Tanzanian MoH has deployed a response team to investigate and monitor the transmission in the Kagera Region. The team works closely in collaboration with other organizations, such as the World Health Organization and the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, to ensure the effective control of the situation. Although there is no vaccine or treatment approved for Marburg virus disease (MVD), supportive management improves survival. Existing infection prevention and control protocols for Ebola and other viral hemorrhagic fevers such as isolation and use of appropriate personal protective equipment can be used to prevent transmission of MVD. The global community must work together to strengthen health systems, enhance research efforts, and build resilient and responsive health systems to prevent future outbreaks of this kind. In this article, we have analyzed the MVD outbreak in Tanzania, specifically in the Bukoba district of the Kagera Region, and provided recommendations for the management of the current outbreak and future outbreaks.

Pseudomonas syringae coffee blight is associated with the horizontal transfer of plasmid-encoded type III effectors.

The emergence of new pathogens is an ongoing threat to human health and agriculture. While zoonotic spillovers received considerable attention, the emergence of crop diseases is less well studied. Here, we identify genomic factors associated with the emergence of Pseudomonas syringae bacterial blight of coffee. Fifty-three P. syringae strains from diseased Brazilian coffee plants were sequenced. Comparative and evolutionary analyses were used to identify loci associated with coffee blight. Growth and symptomology assays were performed to validate the findings. Coffee isolates clustered in three lineages, including primary phylogroups PG3 and PG4, and secondary phylogroup PG11. Genome-wide association study of the primary PG strains identified 37 loci, including five effectors, most of which were encoded on a plasmid unique to the PG3 and PG4 coffee strains. Evolutionary analyses support the emergence of coffee blight in PG4 when the coffee-associated plasmid and associated effectors derived from a divergent plasmid carried by strains associated with other hosts. This plasmid was only recently transferred into PG3. Natural diversity and CRISPR-Cas9 plasmid curing were used to show that strains with the coffee-associated plasmid grow to higher densities and cause more severe disease symptoms in coffee. This work identifies possible evolutionary mechanisms underlying the emergence of a new lineage of coffee pathogens.

An MPXV mRNA-LNP vaccine candidate elicits protective immune responses against monkeypox virus

The monkeypox virus (MPXV) outbreak, declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2022, continues to pose a significant threat due to the absence of vaccines or drugs for MPXV infection. In this study, we developed an mRNA vaccine that expressing the A29L antigen, a specific protein of the intracellular mature virus. Our vaccine utilizes a thermostable ionizable lipid nanoparticle (iLNP) platform and has been administered to mice. Our findings demonstrate that the MPXV A29L mRNA vaccine candidate induces robust cross-neutralizing immune responses against both vaccinia virus (VACV) and MPXV live virus. Furthermore, immunization with the vaccine candidate provided protection against the VACV challenge in mice. These findings underscore the potential of mRNA-LNP vaccines as safe and effective candidates against monkeypox epidemics. Given the current absence of specific interventions for MPXV infection, our study represents a significant step forward in developing a viable solution to combat this ongoing public health threat.

Changes and gaps of global and regional disease burden of hepatitis B infection in children younger than 5 years old between 2015 and 2019: A real-world data review.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has been declared an ongoing health threat, especially infections among children. We compared and updated the disease burden of HBV infection and the effectiveness of vaccination among children younger than 5 years to offer indications for hepatitis B prevention across the world. The country-level data on the prevalence of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), the coverages of hepatitis B vaccine birth-dose (HepB-BD), three-dose series (HepB3), income level, population density/size, and human development index were collected from open access databases including WHO, UNICEF, and World Bank. Comparison of the prevalence of HBsAg under 5 years old between 2015 and 2019 based on vaccination coverages was conducted by the gamma generalized linear mixed model. Globally, more than 6.3 million HBV infections were estimated in children under 5 years in 2019, compared to 10.1 million in 2015 within the 179 countries involved. The pooled average prevalence of HBsAg among children younger than 5 years decreased from 1.4% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-1.8) to 0.9% (95% CI: 0.7-1.2). The rate difference or rate ratio was -0.5% (95% CI: -0.6% to -0.3%) or 0.51(95% CI: 0.44-0.58), respectively. Countries from the African region or with lower income/population density/human development indexes bore the most significant disease burden of hepatitis B. Higher coverages of hepatitis B vaccine birth-dose or primary series correlated with significant HBsAg prevalence decreases and much-decreased ratio, independently. Hepatitis B prevention among children under 5 years has significantly been achieved while remaining the most life-threatening disease burden, unequally distributed worldwide. The hepatitis B vaccination should be prioritized for all newborns, especially in those resource-constrained countries or regions.

Exploration of the common pathogenic link between COVID-19 and diabetic foot ulcers: An in silico approach.

The Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) is posing an ongoing threat to human health. Patients of diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) are susceptible to COVID-19-induced adverse outcomes. Nevertheless, investigations into their mutual molecular mechanisms have been limited to date. In the present work, we tried to uncover the shared pathogenesis and regulatory gene targets of COVID-19 and DFU. In this study, we chose GSE161281 as the COVID-19 data set, which contained severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infected human induced embryonic stem cell-derived peripheral neurons (n = 2) with uninfected controls (n = 2). The GSE134431 designated as the DFU data set, comprising full-thickness DFU (n = 13) and diabetic foot skin (n = 8) samples from diabetic patients. The differential expressed genes (DEGs) were identified from GSE161281 and GSE134431, and the common DEGs between COVID-19 and DFU were extracted. Multifactor regulatory network and co-expression network of the common DEGs were analyzed, along with candidate drug prediction. Altogether, six common DEGs (dickkopf-related protein 1 [DKK1], serine proteinase inhibitor A3 [SERPINA3], ras homolog family member D [RHOD], myelin protein zero like 3 [MPZL3], Claudin-11 [CLDN11], and epidermal growth factor receptor pathway substrate 8-like 1 [EPS8L1]) were found between COVID-19 and DFU. Functional analyses indicated that pathways of apoptotic and Wnt signaling may contribute to progression of COVID-19. Gene co-expression network implied the shared pathways of immune regulation and cytokine response participated collectively in the development of DFU and COVID-19. A multifactor regulatory network was constructed integrating the corresponding microRNAs (miRNAs) and transcription factors. Additionally, we proposed potential drug objects for the combined therapy. Our study revealed the shared molecular mechanisms underlying COVID-19 and DFU. The identified pivotal targets and common pathways can provide new perspectives for further research and assist the development of management strategies in patients of DFU complicated with COVID-19.

Living at the edge: home range patterns of the Buraiga Chimpanzee Community, Kibale National Park, Uganda

Data on space-use patterns are essential for understanding species ecology and conservation. Individual chimpanzee communities are known to vary in home range size and habitat use dynamics, reflecting site-specific strategies to differences in resource availability on different landscapes. Here we present home range estimates for the Buraiga chimpanzees of Kibale National Park, Uganda, a community of eastern chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii) living within the largest remaining population fragment in Uganda. The Buraiga chimpanzees are currently undergoing habituation for research and tourism under the direction of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA). We analyzed 15 months of GPS data (August 2019 – March 2020, and January – July 2022), calculating overall and seasonal home range and core area estimates with two methods, minimum convex polygon (MCP) and kernel density estimates (KDE). Home range was estimated to cover an area of 15.77 km2 (95% KDE), and 24.90 km2 (100% MCP). Additionally, we found that 15.82% of the Buraiga chimpanzee’s home range overlaps with community-managed land, primarily the Kanyanchu Swamp corridor and adjacent agricultural land. Seasonally, we found that Buraiga chimpanzees used a larger area during dry season months, compared with rainy season months. Documenting how great ape populations utilize increasingly anthropogenically influenced landscapes is important in order to facilitate long-term survival in the face of climate change, habitat fragmentation, and other ongoing threats.

Depiction of Nikshay-IDs of notified TB cases on google map for presentation of density of TB in district Kupwara, J&K

In India, TB infects more than 30 percent of its population which is called latent TB infection. The essential source for spread of TB infection is the case with active TB disease. To decrease the burden of Latent TB infection, the best level of prevention is the secondary prevention by screening and diagnosing active TB disease and treating such cases to reduce the source of infection in the community. The importance of such google map has been increased many folds under the circumstances of achieving the Gold Medal by the district Kupwara for elimination of Tuberculosis. Because after achieving such award the general public as well as majority of stakeholders of NTEP in Kupwara have become more reluctant which may adversely affect the NTEP in the District. Seeing is believing, so google map with real time add-on cases of newly notified TB cases w.e.f. 1st January 2023 may become an effective tool for convincing the general public and the secondary and tertiary level stakeholders of NTEP to accept the reality of ongoing threat of TB at the village & panchayat level about the need for continuation of their contribution at individual level as well as community level so that incidence of TB can be further decreased in comparison to the incidence of TB in 2015. It is expected that such visual depiction of TB density may create awareness in the community for the enhancement of activities to fight against TB by its early diagnosis and treatment.

Role Of Plant-Based Bioflavonoids in Combating Tuberculosis

Innovative strategies are required to address the ongoing threat of tuberculosis (TB), which continues to be a serious worldwide health issue. Growing interest has been paid to plant-based bioflavonoids because of their potential as TB adjunctive treatments. This chapter offers a thorough examination of the varied function of bioflavonoids in TB treatment. The first sections highlight bioflavonoids' natural defense roles in plants while describing their chemical diversity and origins. We study the mechanisms of action of bioflavonoids on Mycobacterium TB, including how they interfere with biofilm development, virulence factors, and host immunological responses. Notably, the potential for decreased drug resistance and shortened treatment durations is highlighted when discussing the synergistic effects between bioflavonoids and traditional TB medications. The anti-inflammatory properties of bioflavonoids are examined in the context of TB pathogenesis, addressing their role in modulating inflammatory responses and mitigating tissue damage. Clinical studies evaluating bioflavonoid efficacy, safety, and bioavailability are reviewed, providing insights into their therapeutic potential. Challenges associated with bioavailability and formulation are also discussed, highlighting strategies to optimize drug delivery.Incorporating ethnobotanical perspectives, we explore historical plant-based remedies for TB and the integration of traditional knowledge with modern research. The abstract concludes by outlining future directions, emphasizing promising bioflavonoid candidates for TB treatment, targeting latent infections, and advocating for collaborative, interdisciplinary research efforts. Ultimately, this chapter underscores the promising role of plant-based bioflavonoids as a potential avenue for enhancing the efficacy and resilience of TB treatment strategies, offering hope for improved outcomes in TB management.

Looking Back, Visioning Forward: Preconception Health in the US 2005 to 2023.

Preconception health has always been about preventative health care, ensuring the overall wellbeing of people of reproductive age before they have children. However, just as public health and health care have shifted to prioritize equity and include ideas about how social determinants of health influence health outcomes, the field of preconception health has experienced a similar transition. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the evolution of preconception health in the United States after 2005, highlighting the key tensions that have shaped the field. We provide an overview of the early history of the movement and describe how four phases of ideological tensions overtime have led to changes across seven categories of preconception health: definitions and frameworks, surveillance and measurement, messaging and education, strategic convenings and collaborations, clinical practice, and reproductive life planning. We also describe the historic and emerging challenges that affect preconception care, including limited sustained investment and ongoing threats to reproductive health. The vision of preconception health care we outline has been created by a diversity of voices calling for wellness, equity, and reproductive justice to be the foundation to all preconception health work. This requires a focus on preconception health education that prioritizes bodily autonomy, not just pregnancy intentions; national surveillance and data measures that center equity; attention to mental health and overall well-being; and the inclusion of transgender and non-binary people of reproductive age.

Toward Automatically Connecting IoT Devices with Vulnerabilities in the Wild

With the increasing number of Internet of Things (IoT) devices connected to the internet, the industry and research community have become increasingly concerned about their security impact. Adversaries or hackers often exploit public security flaws to compromise IoT devices and launch cyber attacks. However, despite this growing concern, little effort has been made to investigate the detection of IoT devices and their underlying risks. To address this gap, this article proposes to automatically establish relationships between IoT devices and their vulnerabilities in the wild. Specifically, we construct a deep neural network (DNN) to extract semantic information from IoT packets and generate fine-grained fingerprints of IoT devices. This enables us to annotate IoT devices in cyberspace, including their device type, vendor, and product information. We collect vulnerability reports from various security sources and extract IoT device information from these reports to automatically match vulnerabilities with the fingerprints of IoT devices. We implemented a prototype system and conducted extensive experiments to validate the effectiveness of our approach. The results show that our DNN model achieved a 98% precision rate and a 95% recall rate in IoT device fingerprinting. Furthermore, we collected and analyzed over 13,063 IoT-related vulnerability reports and our method automatically built 5,458 connections between IoT device fingerprints and their vulnerabilities. These findings shed light on the ongoing threat of cyber-attacks on IoT systems as both IoT devices and disclosed vulnerabilities are targets for malicious attackers.

Comparison between TED Talks and scientific articles: global catastrophe risks

The emergence of global catastrophic risks, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, highlights the need to popularize scientific knowledge, in order to disseminate the best practices for combating, preventing and mitigating ongoing environmental, social, economic, geopolitical and technological threats. From this perspective, this article seeks to validate the scientific knowledge publicly available through the online lecture platform TED Talks. The methodology applied was qualitative analysis through comparison between information from scientific databases, with a systematic review of the literature, and analysis of 32 video lectures. The results point to a convergence between the understanding published in scientific articles about global catastrophic risks and the knowledge popularized by the digital lecture platform analyzed.

“Really being yourself”? Racial minority entrepreneurs navigating othering and authenticity through identity work

PurposeDrawing on an intersectional perspective on racial, migrant and entrepreneurial identities, this paper investigates the identity work of racial minority entrepreneurs with native-born and migrant backgrounds, confronted to experiences of othering in a White entrepreneurial ecosystem.Design/methodology/approachThe study takes a qualitative-interpretivist approach and builds on six cases of racial minority entrepreneurs in nascent stages of venture development within the Dutch technology sector. The dataset comprises 24 in-depth interviews conducted over the course of one and a half year, extensive case descriptions and online sources. The data is thematically and inductively analysed.FindingsDespite strongly self-identifying as entrepreneurs, the research participants feel marginalised and excluded from the entrepreneurial ecosystem, which results in ongoing threats to their existential authenticity as they build a legitimate entrepreneurial identity. Minority entrepreneurs navigate these threats by either downplaying or embracing their marginalised racial and/or migrant identities.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the literature on the identity work of minority entrepreneurs. The paper reveals that, rather than “strategising away” the discrimination and exclusion resulting from othering, racial minority entrepreneurs seek to preserve their sense of existential authenticity and self-worth, irrespective of entrepreneurial outcomes. In so doing, the study challenges the dominant perspective of entrepreneurial identity work among minority entrepreneurs as overly instrumental and market-driven. Moreover, the study also contributes to the literature on authenticity in entrepreneurship by highlighting how racial minority entrepreneurs navigate authenticity threats while building legitimacy in a White ecosystem.

Cybersecurity in Lesotho: Current Challenges and Future Opportunities

The rapid growth of digital technologies has transformed the world, enabling new opportunities while also introducing new security risks. Lesotho, like many other countries, faces a range of cybersecurity challenges that threaten the integrity of its information systems, data, and critical infrastructure. This paper provides an overview of the current state of cybersecurity in Lesotho, including the challenges faced by the country and the opportunities for improvement. One prominent cybersecurity concern is the persistent targeting of critical government systems, with a particular focus on the IFMIS (Integrated Financial Management Information System) within the Finance Ministry. This paper examines the vulnerabilities and risks associated with the IFMIS system and analyzes past cyberattacks, such as the successful breach on September 26, 2020, orchestrated by an insider within the Finance Ministry's IFMIS team. It also takes into account a recent attack on the IFMIS system that was encrypted by an unknown entity while synchronizing the backups, highlighting the ongoing threats. The paper reviews the regulatory framework for cybersecurity in Lesotho, the state of cybercrime and cyber threats, and the existing efforts to address these challenges. The paper also proposes a set of recommendations for enhancing cybersecurity in Lesotho, including measures to secure critical government systems like IFMIS to protect against future cyber threats and data breaches.

Making the match and breaking it: values, perceptions, and obstacles of trainees applying into physician-scientist training programs

BackgroundReplenishing the physician-scientist workforce constitutes a central mission of medical education, but the loss of qualified trainees to non-academic positions remains an ongoing threat. Among the barriers facing physician-scientists today is the game-like model of U.S. medical residency matching through the National Research Matching Program (NRPM), which applies several assumptions regarding the comparability of applicant qualifications, cohort size, and the institutional breadth of applicants’ training needs.MethodsThe current report therefore summarizes the survey-based views and experiences of physician-scientist trainees obtained following the 2021–2022 application cycle for research-oriented residency programs, or physician-scientist training programs (PSTPs). From among this small cohort of applicants, we obtained survey-based feedback of 27 PSTP applicants across 17 U.S. medical universities, among whom 85% (23/27) matched into a PSTP.ResultsAmong these PSTP applicants, 25/27 (93%) recognized “scientific community” as the most important feature of a postgraduate training program, with applicants identifying as female placing a higher value on the program’s infrastructure of personal and/or family support. Most (18/27) respondents found “waiting for interviews” as the most stressful phase of their application cycle, and roughly half of all respondents encountered at least one NRMP policy violation through post-interview communication. Specifically, 93% (25/27) respondents were contacted by at least one PSTP following interviews, and 1/3 of them admitted to feeling pressured into sharing their ranking preferences.ConclusionWe highlight many previously unrecognized priorities among applicants to PSTPs, which include fostering community among its trainees and reinforcing structured mentoring. We uncover an inconsistency among PSTPs regarding the post-interview process, which represents an opportunity to better support applicants seeking to gauge programs according to their clinical, scientific, and academic interests as physician-scientists, while still adhering to NRMP policies.

Effects of carbon dioxide emissions on agricultural production indexes in East African community countries: Pooled mean group and fixed effect approaches

The ongoing climate change threat brought by the increase of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the atmosphere has rekindled global activism to address its detrimental effects on agricultural production with the maximum tenacity. The current study, consequently, examines the causal effect between CO2 emissions and agricultural production indexes while controlling for renewable energy consumption, arable land and governance, using data spanning from 1996 to 2019. The study applied pooled mean group/Autoregressive distributed lag and fixed effect approaches and tested for the causality between the variable of interest using the Dumitrescu and Hurlin Granger non-causality test. The long-run equation shows that CO2 emissions, renewable energy consumption, labour force and arable land size have positive effects on the crop production index. Whereas, renewable energy consumption, labour force, arable land size and governance positively affect the livestock production index. While no causality exists between CO2 emissions and crop production index. However, the effects of governance and the size of arable land on agricultural production remained inconclusive. To achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goal of zero hunger for their people, East African Community countries need to commercialize agricultural production and embrace more eco-friendly farming techniques.

Anisomeles indica Extracts and Their Constituents Suppress the Protein Expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 In Vivo and In Vitro.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), stemming from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has had a profound global impact. This highly contagious pneumonia remains a significant ongoing threat. Uncertainties persist about the virus's effects on human health, underscoring the need for treatments and prevention. Current research highlights angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) as key targets against SARS-CoV-2. The virus relies on ACE2 to enter cells and TMPRSS2 to activate its spike protein. Inhibiting ACE2 and TMPRSS2 expression can help prevent and treat SARS-CoV-2 infections. Anisomeles indica (L.) Kuntze, a medicinal plant in traditional Chinese medicine, shows various promising pharmacological properties. In this study, ethanolic extracts of A. indica were examined both in vivo (250 and 500 μM) and in vitro (500 μM). Through Western blotting analysis, a significant reduction in the expression levels of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 proteins was observed in HepG2 (human hepatocellular carcinoma) cells and HEK 293T (human embryonic kidney) cell lines without inducing cellular damage. The principal constituents of A. indica, namely, ovatodiolide (5 and 10 μM), anisomlic acid (5 and 10 μM), and apigenin (12.5 and 25 μM), were also found to produce the same effect. Furthermore, immunohistochemical analysis of mouse liver, kidney, and lung tissues demonstrated a decrease in ACE2 and TMPRSS2 protein expression levels. Consequently, this article suggests that A. indica and its constituents have the potential to reduce ACE2 and TMPRSS2 protein expression levels, thus aiding in the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infections.

Greater soil carbon losses from secondary than old-growth tropical forests

Tropical forests play a crucial role in mediating the global carbon cycle and climate. Southeast Asian tropical forests are experiencing ongoing threats of deforestation and degradation. There is an urgent need to determine how the conversion from primary forest to secondary forest coverage may impact C stocks and cycling. While old-growth forests typically contain larger stores of C aboveground than secondary forests, past research has found varied results for belowground soil C storage and fluxes between tropical forest types. We examined differences in annual soil C efflux in a 2-ha old-growth and an adjacent 2-ha 70-year-old secondary ForestGEO plots in Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in Singapore. We hypothesized that the secondary forest would have greater soil C efflux rates than the old-growth forest and explored several potential drivers of soil C efflux including abiotic and biotic factors such as soil moisture, fine root biomass, and ectomycorrhizal association. We found that the hypothesis was supported, suggesting that belowground carbon dynamics fundamentally differ with forest age. Additionally, we found that fine root biomass was the best predictor of soil C efflux in the secondary forest and soil moisture in the old-growth forest. The difference in soil C efflux between forest types indicates that with continued degradation of old-growth forests in Southeast Asia, conversion of old-growth forests into secondary forests may drive greater C loss from soils even after 70 years of regrowth.