Potential Niche Research Articles

Spatial transcriptomics reveals molecular cues underlying the site specificity of the adult mouse oral mucosa and its stem cell niches.

The oral cavity is a multifunctional organ composed of structurally heterogeneous mucosal tissues that remain poorly characterized. Oral mucosal tissues are highly stratified and segmented along an epithelial-lamina propria axis. Here, we performed spatial transcriptomics (tomo-seq) on the tongue, cheeks, and palate of the adult mouse to understand the cues that maintain the oral mucosal sites. We define molecular markers of unique and shared cellular niches and differentiation programs across oral sites. Using a comparative approach, we identify fibroblast growth factor (FGF) pathway components as potential stem cell niche factors for oral epithelial stem cells. Using organoid-forming efficiency assays, we validated three FGF ligands (FGF1, FGF7, and FGF10) as site-specific niche factors in the dorsal and ventral tongue. Our dataset of the spatially resolved genes across major oral sites represents a comprehensive resource for unraveling the molecular mechanisms underlying the adult homeostasis of the oral mucosa and its stem cell niches.

Prediction of environmental suitability for Haematoxylum campechianum: a proposal to promote reforestation in Mexico

Models of potential distribution and ecological niche allow to estimate priority areas for the management of species of interest, as well as to identify variables related to environmental suitability and predict the behavior of species in the face of anthropogenic disturbances. Logwood (Haematoxylum campechianum) is a species that we consider a natural heritage in southeastern Mexico because of its ecological role and the current and historical use of its wood. This species is present in different vegetation types and even dominates in some ecosystems called "tintales", which have been exploited for dye extraction in past centuries. This, combined with changes in land use for livestock, agriculture, and other anthropogenic activities, has affected the Logwood´s distribution and connectivity of its populations. We modeled the potential distribution of H. campechianum and evaluated the feasibility of reforestation with this species in southeastern Mexico. For this purpose, we included 638 occurrence points and used the MaxEnt algorithm for modeling, analyzing different parameters. We used the potential distribution model, accessibility to the areas and water availability to calculate a feasibility index for reforestation. The environmental suitability for the species is more present in southeastern Mexico, conditioned by the aridity index, the maximum temperature of the coldest month and the warmest month. The greatest percentage of areas with high feasibility indexes for reforestation are found in Campeche, apparently a key state for the conservation and management of the species. This study can be the starting point for implementing reforestation programs with H. campechianum and can be used as an example to apply to other species with patrimonial value.

Evaluation of climate conditions and ecological traits that limit the distribution expansion of alien Lolium rigidum in Japan

Invasive alien plants cause severe global problems; therefore, determining the factors that lead to the success or failure of invasion is a critical question in the field of invasion ecology. In this study, we aimed to determine the factors underlying differences in the distribution range of alien plants in Japan by investigating why Lolium multiflorum thrives in a wide range of habitats while L. rigidum is mainly distributed on sandy beaches. We initially evaluated environmental niche suitability through species distribution modelling and subsequently examined whether species traits influence the differences in range expansion between the two species. We used MaxEnt modelling to identify potential environmental niches for both species. The analysis revealed that L. rigidum was considerably less suited to the Japanese climate compared to L. multiflorum, with high summer precipitation in Japan identified as one of the climatic factors limiting the distribution of L. rigidum. Given that these winter annual plants remain dormant as seeds during summer, in subsequent experiments, we buried seeds in paddy field soil and sandy beach sand during summer and evaluated their survival rate in autumn. The survival rate of L. rigidum seeds was significantly lower than that of L. multiflorum, particularly in paddy soil. Factors contributing to seed mortality may include the decay or early germination of L. rigidum seeds under Japan’s high rainfall conditions. This study emphasises the importance of considering local environmental factors alongside climate niche modelling in the risk assessment of invasive species. Moreover, the integration of species distribution modelling for large-scale evaluations and manipulation experiments for fine-scale assessments proved effective in identifying climatic conditions and species traits influencing the success or failure of alien species invasion.

Global change drives potential niche contraction and range shift of globally threatened African vulture

Human-induced global change poses an increasingly severe threat to biodiversity, with species having limited population sizes being particularly vulnerable. Mapping and modeling the distribution ranges of such species, along with detecting potential range shifts and contractions at both local and regional scales, are essential for developing effective conservation plans. Ruppell's vulture Gyps rueppelli, an ecologically important bird species native to Africa, is experiencing a rapid decline in its range. The purpose of this study is to map and model potential regional spatio-temporal distribution of Ruppell's vulture in Africa, alongside detecting the possibility of the species' range shifts and contractions. A total of 804 rarefied localities were identified where the Ruppell's vulture was the dominant bird species. This study employed the Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) algorithm to perform species distribution modeling for the Ruppell's vulture. The modeling considered current climate conditions (1970s-2000s) as a baseline, along with two future climate change scenarios (Shared Socioeconomic Pathways: SSPs 245 and 585) for two future time periods (2050s and 2070s). The model's performance was evaluated by optimizing settings and examining the Area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUC-ROC). Among the 13 bioclimatic and anthropogenic variables included in the model, four (isothermality, cropland expansion, anthropogenic biomes, and urban expansion (in order of importance)) emerged as the most influential drivers of Ruppell's vulture regional distribution. All considered Species distribution models (SDMs) achieved high predictive performance, with AUC-ROC values exceeding 0.9.The model predicted a total of approximately 19,453 ha of suitable habitat for Ruppell's vultures in Africa, with East Africa identified as the most prominent region under the current climate scenario. Isothermality (38.8%) was the primary factor influencing Ruppell's vulture distribution, followed by agricultural expansion (29.9%) and anthropogenic biomes (7.2%) in the face of global change. The results reveal considerable future habitat loss (up to 61%) for Ruppell's vultures in the study area, alongside an eastward range shift (longitudinal axis) by the 2050s under projected climate change scenarios. These imply that Ruppell's vultures face imminent population decline and range shift due to significant habitat loss and climate change. Hence, prioritizing the development and implementation of a coordinated conservation program that incorporates captive breeding and assisted migration is critical to save this vulture species in its native African range.

Genetic and Molecular Heterogeneity of Synovial Sarcoma and Associated Challenges in Therapy.

Synovial sarcoma (SS) is one of the most common types of pediatric soft tissue sarcoma (STS) being far less frequent in adults. This STS type is characterized by one specific chromosomal translocation SS18-SSX and the associated changes in signaling. However, other genetic and epigenetic abnormalities in SS do not necessarily include SS18-SSX-related events, but abnormalities are more sporadic and do not correlate well with the prognosis and response to therapy. Currently, targeted therapy for synovial sarcoma includes a limited range of drugs, and surgical resection is the mainstay treatment for localized cancer with adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Understanding the molecular characteristics of synovial sarcoma subtypes is becoming increasingly important for detecting new potential targets and developing innovative therapies. Novel approaches to treating synovial sarcoma include immune-based therapies (such as TCR-T cell therapy to NY-ESO-1, MAGE4, PRAME or using immune checkpoint inhibitors), epigenetic modifiers (HDAC inhibitors, EZH2 inhibitors, BRD disruptors), as well as novel or repurposed receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors. In the presented review, we aimed to summarize the genetic and epigenetic landscape of SS as well as to find out the potential niches for the development of novel diagnostics and therapies.

Development of the global competitiveness of Russian regions: the concept and configuration of the "smart" complementarity

Purpose: is to work out the scientifically sound theoretical and methodical framework for the «smart» complementarity of trade flows, aimed at selecting and substantiating potential commodity niches in trade of Russian regions with foreign countries.Methods: the general methodological basis of the study is the critical analysis of the scientific literature that forms the theoretical and methodological basis for the global competitiveness of individual regions of a country presented in the theories of regional and spatial economy. The study has been carried out by methods of system, structural-logical and abstract-logical analysis.Results: the research resulted in some fundamental scientific novelties such as: the scientifically grounded theoretical concept of “smart” complementarity, which makes it possible to identify the presence of specific foreign trade niches in a geographical (country, region) and commodity contexts, based on an analysis of the complementarity of trade flows at the level of a Russian region and a foreign country, and assessment of the global competitiveness of the regional economy, as well as “fine” criteria that determine the activity of participants in foreign economic activity. The applied results included a specific configuration of "smart" complementarity – the algorithm for determining promising economic specializations of the region, allowing to combine trade statistics of a foreign country with data regional statistics, indicating the presence of foreign trade potential, taking into account regional economic specializations. The developed algorithm is intended for the use in an information and analytical system to support management decisions in the field of foreign economic activity of the region.Conclusions and Relevance: the concept and configuration of «smart» complementarity in their practical implementation in the form of an information and analytical system are proposed in the article to provide the participants of foreign economic activity with data on promising export groups for selected countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. This approach allows moving the «center of gravity» of building trade and economic relations with foreign countries from the federal to the regional level.

Leveraging social media and community science data for environmental niche models: A case study with native Australian bees

Museum occurrence records are popular sources of information for creating Environmental Niche Models (ENMs), which allow the mapping of the potential niche ranges of species. Occurrence data is often downloaded en masse from established databases. However, the use of non-traditional data sources, such as occurrence records from community/citizen science outreach and social media, is increasing in use and abundance. Data from non-traditional data sources are potentially valuable records of information, particularly for species where museum occurrence records may be comparatively scarce. In the current study, we aimed to determine the impact of adding occurrence data from non-traditional databases to ENMs that were originally created using traditional databases with a group of comparatively understudied species, native Australian bees. We used the Maxent algorithm to model the potential environmental niches of eight species. We created three models for each species: 1) one consisting of only location data from museum specimen collection records from the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) (a traditional database), 2) one combining ALA and geo-tagged social media (Flickr) data, and 3) a model combining ALA and geo-tagged community science data from iNaturalist. This resulted in 24 different models. By comparing the models produced from each of the augmented data sets with the traditional species data set (ALA vs. ALA & Flickr; ALA vs. ALA & iNaturalist) we showed that there were significant differences, not only in predicted ranges, but also in the weighting of environmental variables used by the models to predict the environmental niche. Differences were more greatly influenced by the geographic location of the extra occurrences rather than the number of additional occurrence points. We demonstrate the potential value and risks of including social media and community science geo-tagged image data in supplementing knowledge of species distributions, particularly for relatively under-sampled species such as native bees.

The effects of climate and population on human land use patterns in Europe from 22ka to 9ka ago

Between 22ka and 9ka ago, after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and during the transition to the Holocene, mobile hunter-gatherer populations, differentiated by their stone tool assemblages, periodically dispersed and contracted across Europe. It is well understood that climate played an important role in human distributions and population sizes during the post-LGM Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene, but the question remains as to whether increasing population sizes drove early human dispersal. Here, using a spatiotemporal species distribution model to infer the fundamental and potential human climatic niche space of Late Upper Paleolithic, Final Paleolithic and Early Mesolithic Europe, and hypotheses derived from the Ideal Distribution Model, we test i) how changes in climate affected the size and extent of the projected potential human niche space, ii) for effects of changes in size of projected potential niche on regional human population sizes, iii) whether increasing human population sizes drove human dispersal into less climatically suitable habitats, and iv) whether populations associated with different high-order material culture groupings (macro-level technocomplexes) occupied different climatic spaces. We find that changes in climate correlate strongly with the size and extent of the projected potential human niche space, that increases in the projected human niche space correlate with increases in human population, that human population size is just beginning to become large enough to influence land use and dispersal patterns at the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, and that archaeological technocultural entities overlap in their fundamental climatic niche space. This overlap implies that changing tools forms cannot readily been seen as reflecting adaptations to changing climates.

Trophic ecology of the African riverine elephant fishes (Mormyridae).

Multiple species of the elephant fishes (Mormyridae) commonly coexist in sympatry in most African tropical rivers and lakes. In this study, we investigated the trophic ecology and potential trophic niche partitioning of eleven mormyrid fish species from the Sanaga River system in Cameroon using the stable isotope composition of carbon and nitrogen in the muscle samples. Albeit most mormyrids mainly feed on invertebrates, we found differences in isotope ratios, and we report signs of the trophic niche partitioning among species. We further found significant differences in isotopic signatures within the Mormyrus genus, suggesting ecological niche diversification among three closely related species. We have also evaluated differences in the isotopic signals between seasons in four species, which could be possibly caused by species migration and/or anthropogenic agricultural activities. To evaluate body shape, we applied geometric morphometric analyses, and we show that most of the species are clearly morphologically separated. We focused on the mormyrid ecomorphology to identify a possible interaction between shape and ecology, and we found a relationship between the δ13C (but not δ15N) isotopic signal and morphology, suggesting their interplay during mormyrid evolution. Overall, we present robust evidence of the trophic niche partitioning within the mormyrid species community, and we integrate trophic ecology with morphometrics, shedding light on the enigmatic evolutionary history of these fascinating African fishes.

The ongoing range expansion of the invasive oak lace bug across Europe: current occurrence and potential distribution under climate change

In recent years, the oak lace bug, Corythucha arcuata, has emerged as a significant threat to European oak forests. This species, native to North America, has in the last two decades rapidly extended its range in Europe, raising concerns about its potential impact on the continent's invaluable oak populations. To address this growing concern, we conducted an extensive study to assess the distribution, colonization patterns, and potential ecological niche of the oak lace bug in Europe.We gathered 1792 unique presence coordinates from 21 Eurasian countries, utilizing diverse sources such as research observations, citizen science initiatives, GBIF database, and social media reports. To delineate the realized niche and future distribution, we employed an ensemble species distribution modelling (SDM) framework. Two future greenhouse gas scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) were considered across three-time intervals (2021–2040, 2061–2080, and 2081–2100) to project and evaluate the species' potential distribution in the future.Our analysis revealed that significant hotspots rich in host species occurrence for this invasive insect remain uninvaded so far, even within its suitable habitat. Furthermore, the native ranges of Turkey oak (Quercus cerris L.) and Hungarian oak (Quercus frainetto L.) species offer entirely suitable environments for the oak lace bug. In contrast, the pedunculate oak and sessile oak distribution ranges currently show only 40 % and 50 % suitability for colonization, respectively. However, our predictive models indicate a significant transformation in the habitat suitability of the oak lace bug, with suitability for these two oak species increasing by up to 90 %. This shift underlines an evolving landscape where the oak lace bug may exploit more of its available habitats than initially expected. It emphasises the pressing need for proactive measures to manage and stop its expanding presence, which may lead to a harmful impact on the oak population across the European landscape.

Forecasting the potential distribution and niche of two similar gastropod species in South America: the intermediate host of schistosomiasis Biomphalaria glabrata and the invasive Melanoides tuberculata

Forecasting the potential distribution and niche of two similar gastropod species in South America: the intermediate host of schistosomiasis Biomphalaria glabrata and the invasive Melanoides tuberculata

Trees have overlapping potential niches that extend beyond their realized niches.

Tree species appear to prefer distinct climatic conditions, but the true nature of these preferences is obscured by species interactions and dispersal, which limit species' ranges. We quantified realized and potential thermal niches of 188 North American tree species to conduct a continental-scale test of the architecture of niches. We found strong and consistent evidence that species occurring at thermal extremes occupy less than three-quarters of their potential niches, and species' potential niches overlap at a mean annual temperature of ~12°C. These results clarify the breadth of thermal tolerances of temperate tree species and support the centrifugal organization of thermal niches. Accounting for the nonrealized components of ecological niches will advance theory and prediction in global change ecology.

Assessing climate niche similarity between persian fallow deer (Dama mesopotamica) areas in Iran

The Persian fallow deer or Mesopotamian fallow Deer (Dama mesopotamica, Brook 1875), a species of significant ecological importance, had faced the threat of extinction in Iran. One conservation strategy involved the translocation of Persian deer to enclosed areas across Iran, where they were afforded protection from external threats and provided with essential care by human caretakers. While human caretakers diligently attend to their needs and mitigate external threats, climate variables may now become critical factors affecting population dynamics in enclosed areas. This study aims to assess the similarity in climate niches between the original area (Dez and Karkheh) of the Persian deer species and 11 newly enclosed areas. To achieve this, we employed climate data and ecological niche modeling (ENM) techniques to assess the variations in climate among 12 areas. We utilized the environmental equivalency test to determine whether the environmental spaces of area pairs exhibit significant differences and whether these spaces are interchangeable. Extrapolation analyses were also constructed in the next steps to explore climatic conditions in original fallow deer habitats that are non-analogous to those in other parts of Iran. Our results reveal significant disparities in climate conditions between the original and all translocated areas. Based on observations of population growth in specific enclosed areas where translocated deer populations have thrived, we hypothesize that the species may demonstrate a non-equilibrium distribution in Iran. Consequently, these new areas could potentially be regarded as part of the species’ potential climate niche. Extrapolation analysis showed that for a significant portion of Iran, extrapolation predictions are highly uncertain and potentially unreliable for the translocation of Persian fallow deer. However, the primary objective of translocation efforts remains the establishment of self-sustaining populations of Persian deer capable of thriving in natural areas beyond enclosed areas, thus ensuring their long-term survival and contributing to preservation efforts. Evaluating the success of newly translocated species requires additional time, with varying levels of success observed. In cases where the growth rate of the species in certain enclosed areas falls below expectations, it is prudent to consider climate variables that may contribute to population declines. Furthermore, for future translocations, we recommend selecting areas with climate similarities to regions where the species has demonstrated growth rates.

Forecasting habitat suitability and niche shifts of two global maize pests: Ostrinia furnacalis and Ostrinia nubilalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae).

Ostrinia furnacalis (ACB) and Ostrinia nubilalis (ECB) are devastating pests of the agricultural crop maize worldwide. However, little is known about their potential distribution and niche shifts during their global invasion. Since long-term selection to past climate variability has shaped their historical niche breadth, such niche shifts may provide an alternative basis for understanding their responses to present and future climate change. By integrating the niche unfilling, stability, and expansion situations into a single framework, our study quantifies the patterns of niche shift in the spatial distribution of these two pests during the different periods. Our results show that the overall suitable habitats of ACB and ECB in the future decrease but highly and extremely suitable habitat will become more widespread, suggesting these two insects may occur more frequently in specific regions. Compared with Southeast Asia and Australia, the ACB niche in China exhibited expansion rather than unfilling. For ECB, initial niches have a tendency to be retained in Eurasia despite there also being potential for expansion in North America. The niche equivalency and similarity test results further indicate that niche shifts were common for both ACB and ECB in different survival regions during their colonization of new habitat and their suitable habitat changes during the paleoclimate were associated with climatic changes. These findings improve our understanding of the ecological characteristics of ACB and ECB worldwide, and will be useful in the development of prevention and control strategies for two insect pests worldwide. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

Global ischemia induces stemness and dedifferentiation in human adult cardiomyocytes after cardiac arrest

Global ischemia has been shown to induce cardiac regenerative response in animal models. One of the suggested mechanisms behind cardiac regeneration is dedifferentiation of cardiomyocytes. How human adult cardiomyocytes respond to global ischemia is not fully known. In this study, biopsies from the left ventricle (LV) and the atrioventricular junction (AVj), a potential stem cell niche, were collected from multi-organ donors with cardiac arrest (N = 15) or without cardiac arrest (N = 6). Using immunohistochemistry, we investigated the expression of biomarkers associated with stem cells during cardiomyogenesis; MDR1, SSEA4, NKX2.5, and WT1, proliferation markers PCNA and Ki67, and hypoxia responsive factor HIF1α. The myocyte nuclei marker PCM1 and cardiac Troponin T were also included. We found expression of cardiac stem cell markers in a subpopulation of LV cardiomyocytes in the cardiac arrest group. The same cells showed a low expression of Troponin T indicating remodeling of cardiomyocytes. No such expression was found in cardiomyocytes from the control group. Stem cell biomarker expression in AVj was more pronounced in the cardiac arrest group. Furthermore, co-expression of PCNA and Ki67 with PCM1 was only found in the cardiac arrest group in the AVj. Our results indicate that a subpopulation of human cardiomyocytes in the LV undergo partial dedifferentiation upon global ischemia and may be involved in the cardiac regenerative response together with immature cardiomyocytes in the AVj.

New Leafy Greens—Plant Age Effects on Perilla Leaves

Given that, not much is known about potential yields and nutritional quality of perilla [Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton, Lamiaceae] for production in eastern USA as food, we evaluated fresh leaves of five accessions during 2021. The seeds were germinated in a greenhouse and about 15-day old seedlings were transplanted to the field on black-plastic covered raised beds. Leaves were harvested for analyses at 69 and 85 days after transplanting. Four accessions with green-colored leaves performed better than one with purple leaves. Leaf fresh weights varied from 105 to 279 g per plant whereas number of leaves per plant varied from 368 to 465. Concentrations (g/100 g) of protein, fat, fiber, Ca, P, K, Mg, and S in fresh perilla leaves produced in Virginia contained 17.9, 4.2, 7.3, 1.3, 0.39, 2.0, 0.40, and 0.17, respectively whereas mean values (mg kg-1) for Fe, Cu, Zn, and Mn were 291, 19.9, 40.5, and 56.2. Leaves of perilla produced in Virginia contained considerable more protein (about 4 times more), fiber and fat than literature values demonstrating location differences. Effects of plant age were significant on all plant and leaf physical traits—values from 85 day old plants were significantly higher than those from 69 day old plants. Based on our preliminary results, we have identified PI481701 as the optimal accession. We concluded that perilla is a potential niche crop for Virginia farmers.

No evidence of mpox virus circulation in putative animal reservoirs in Gabon wildlife

ObjectivesMpox is a neglected viral endemic tropical disease in Central and Western African countries transmitted to humans by an animal. However, the natural reservoir of the virus remains elusive. In this study, we looked for potential reservoirs of the mpox virus (MPXV) in Gabonese wildlife to prevent future outbreaks and enrich the literature with additional data on animal reservoirs. MethodsDNA was extracted from the livers and spleens from 2549 animals (bats [859], bushmeats [356], rodents [1309], and shrews [25]) collected between 2012 and 2021. DNA was analyzed by real-time and conventional polymerase chain reaction, targeting the 14 kD protein and the rpo subunit RNA polymerase of orthopoxviruses. ResultsNo MPXV DNA was detected despite the presence of potential host reservoirs such as Critcetomys, Crocidura, Praomys, and Atherurus africanus. This absence could be due to (i) the low number of animals collected for some species, (ii) the acute nature of mpox infection but also (iii) the lack of the potential reservoir Funisciurus anerythrus among collected animals, and (iv) the fact that the samplings are not included in the probable ecological niche of MPXV. ConclusionLongitudinal studies including potential ecological niches of F. anerythrus and MPXV in Gabon may be useful to get more information on MPXV circulation.

Analysis of potential niche shifts in alien pairs of mantis species (Insecta, Mantodea) with comments on the current taxonomic and ecological knowledge

Due to the pet and goods trade, several animals are now present in regions outside of their traditional native ranges. A peculiar situation has arisen in mantises, insects that are becoming more popular as pets: two genera (Hierodula and Tenodera) have begun to spread around the world, with two Hierodula species overlapping in Europe and two Tenodera species doing the same in North America. Such an event can lead to possible competition with both local taxa and alien congeneric sister species; the latter may reduce the impact of one of the invaders. Additionally, the situation allows the comparisons of niche shifts in displaced mantises, allowing us to understand whether such animals respect general patterns shown in terrestrial ectothermic invasive species. To do this, I adapted scripts from previous publications for analyzing niche overlap (Schoener’s D), niche expansion (E), and unfilling (U) through the centroid shift, overlap, unfilling, and expansion (COUE) scheme using presence records from GBIF and iNaturalist Research-Grade observations and bioclimatic variables available in BIOCLIM, selected according to variance inflation factor (VIF) values. I also evaluated the overlap between the sister species in the non-native range with D. Overall, there was relatively high niche expansion and unfilling patterns shared among the taxa, although species tended to have low abiotic overlap between native and alien ranges, and a relatively high niche overlap was present among congeneric species in the shared non-native area. However, such analyses may be biased due to chosen variables, taxonomic uncertainty, and lack of information on mantises’ ecology; particularly, the situation regarding H. tenuidentata/transcaucasica should be monitored and clarified, given the higher potential invasion risk of these species compared to other mantises and the uncertainties regarding which populations have reached Europe. Additionally, the biology of alien mantises should be studied in more detail in both native and non-native environments given the current critical lack of information.

Climate as a Predictive Factor for Invasion: Unravelling the Range Dynamics of Carpomya vesuviana Costa.

Invasive alien species (IAS) significantly affect global native biodiversity, agriculture, industry, and human health. Carpomya vesuviana Costa, 1854 (Diptera: Tephritidae), a significant global IAS, affects various date species, leading to substantial economic losses and adverse effects on human health and the environment. This study employed biomod2 ensemble models, multivariate environmental similarity surface and most dissimilar variable analyses, and ecological niche dynamics based on environmental and species data to predict the potential distribution of C. vesuviana and explore the environmental variables affecting observed patterns and impacts. Compared to native ranges, ecological niche shifts at invaded sites increased the invasion risk of C. vesuviana globally. The potential geographical distribution was primarily in Asia, Africa, and Australia, with a gradual increase in suitability with time and radiation levels. The potential geographic distribution centre of C. vesuviana is likely to shift poleward between the present and the 2090s. We also show that precipitation is a key factor influencing the likely future distribution of this species. In conclusion, climate change has facilitated the expansion of the geographic range and ecological niche of C. vesuviana, requiring effective transnational management strategies to mitigate its impacts on the natural environment and public health during the Anthropocene. This study aims to assess the potential threat of C. vesuviana to date palms globally through quantitative analytical methods. By modelling and analysing its potential geographic distribution, ecological niche, and environmental similarities, this paper predicts the pest's dispersal potential and possible transfer trends in geographic centres of mass in order to provide prevention and control strategies for the global date palm industry.

Scaling carbon removal systems: deploying direct air capture amidst Canada’s low-carbon transition

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies, such as direct air carbon capture and storage (DACCS), will be critical in limiting the rise of the average global temperature over the next century. Scaling up DACCS technologies requires the support of a complex array of policies and infrastructure across multiple overlapping policy areas, such as climate, energy, technology innovation and resource management. While the literature on DACCS and other CDR technologies acknowledges the path-dependent nature of policy development, it has tended to focus on abstract policy prescriptions that are not rooted in the specific political, social and physical (infrastructural) context of the implementing state. To address this gap, this paper provides a country-level study of the emerging DACCS policy regime in Canada. Drawing on the existing literature that identifies idealized (acontextual) policy objectives that support DACCS development and effective regulation, we identify the actionable policy objectives across six issue domains: general climate mitigation strategies; energy and resource constraints; carbon storage and transport regulation and infrastructure; financing scale-up and supporting innovation; removal and capture technology availability and regulation; and addressing social acceptability and public interest. Using a database of Canadian climate policies (n = 457), we identify policies within the Canadian (federal and provincial) policy environment that map to the idealized policy objectives within each of these domains. This exercise allows us to analyze how key policy objectives for DACCS development are represented within the Canadian system, and enables us to identify potential niches, and landscape influences within the system, as well as gaps and potential barriers to the system transition process. This paper contributes to our understanding of national DACCS policy development by providing a framework for identifying components of the DAC system and linking those components to desired policy outcomes and may provide a basis for future cross-country comparisons of national-level DACCS policy.