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Foster care provides a family‐like upbringing for children who cannot stay with their biological parents for various reasons. While the practice of paying foster parents is not questioned, the level of the fee and how it is spent (or not spent) are morally charged matters. Foster parents’ motives may be questioned by the media, neighbors, or social workers, who may suspect financial gain. Although
The water level-area-storage volume (Z-A-V) relationship serves as the cornerstone of reservoir operations, governing water allocation, flood mitigation, and power generation. Sedimentation-induced capacity alterations can progressively degrade Z-A-V accuracy, yet systematic curve updates remain inadequately implemented across developing nations. Traditional reconstruction approaches face inherent
Introduction: Acute lower limb ischemia (ALI) is a life and limb threatening event often affecting patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Little is known about how T2DM affects the risk of adverse events in patients revascularized for ALI. This study aimed to investigate if there were differences in major outcomes between ALI patients with and without T2DM. Methods: Between 2010 and 2014,
Forest loss, fragmentation, and transformation negatively impact forest biodiversity and ecosystem functionality worldwide. Improving landscape intactness and connectivity through restoration is critical. Determining where to restore remains, however, a challenge. As an approach for prioritizing restoration areas, we define connectivity forest (CFs) as forests outside recognized high conservation
Accurate evapotranspiration (ET) estimation is vital for hydrological modeling, yet remotely sensed ET (RS-ET) products are often limited by algorithmic uncertainties and sensor biases. To mitigate error propagation and better capture spatial patterns, this study introduces the Composite Efficiency of Absolute ET and Spatial Autocorrelation (CEASA) —a dual-constraint framework that integrates abso
Accurate reservoir dynamics, particularly water storage and inflow, are crucial for release decisions and operation rule assessments. However, the lack of sufficient monitoring data has hindered the accurate representation of reservoir behavior in hydrological models. While the increasing availability of satellite imagery provides unprecedented opportunities for dynamic reservoir monitoring, its p
We present the CH4 and N2O budgets for anthropogenic and natural sources and sinks of Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) from 2010 to 2019 using bottom-up and top-down methods, in line with the RECCAP-2 initiative, with extensions to 2022. We show that the bottom-up CH4 budget for Australasia (2010–2019) was a net source of 14.1 ± 5.5 Tg CH4 yr−1, with Australia and New Zealand contributing 8
Pediatric cancers exhibit complex evolutionary dynamics driven by genetic instability, clonal selection, epigenetic reprogramming, and microenvironmental interactions. Tumor evolution is typically characterized by branching phylogenies, where subclones with unique genetic profiles emerge at different locations and time points. Partly as a result of this diversity, advanced cancers often develop re
The 1st Ecuadorian Dendrochronology Conference (ECUADENDRO 2025) took place in Daule, Ecuador, on January 23–24, 2025, with the generous sponsorship of the Tree-Ring Society. The event attracted 230 participants from 45 countries, bringing together leading experts in various subfields of tree-ring science, including dendroclimatology, dendroecology, dendrogeomorphology, dendroarchaeology, and cell
BACKGROUND: Global longitudinal strain (GLS) and left atrial strain metrics, including reservoir (LAr), contraction (LAct), and conduit strain (LAcd), have emerged as key indicators of left ventricular (LV) function and filling pressures. However, the prognostic value of these markers for risk stratification in acute heart failure (HF) remains uncertain, particularly in identifying patients at ele
Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), driven by cues from the tumor microenvironment, is a critical initiator of metastatic progression. In breast cancer patients, elevated expression of cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP) is associated with shorter survival and increased metastatic risk. Here, we investigated the role of COMP in regulating EMT in breast cancer. Breast cancer cells tr
Introduction: Despite being implicated in a wide spectrum of community- and healthcare-acquired infections, anaerobes have not yet been incorporated into systematic surveillance programs in Europe. Methods: We conducted a multicentre retrospective observational study analysing all anaerobic strains isolated from blood cultures in 44 European Hospital Centres over a 4-y period (2020–2023). Diagnost
Aquatic and terrestrial habitats are interdependent components of the boreal forest landscape involving multiple dynamic interactions; these are manifested particularly in riparian areas, which are key components in the forest landscape. However, this interdependence between aquatic and terrestrial habitats is not adequately accounted for in the current management of forest ecosystems. Here we rev
Neighborhood support can improve aging in place for older adults, but research on the role of public housing staff in supporting older tenants is lacking. Twenty-nine participants (janitors, n = 11; maintenance staff, n = 18) collected data about critical situations among older tenants residing in apartments in Sweden. Modifying the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) and applying a mixed-methods de
IntroductionPostural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) is a disorder characterized by excessive orthostatic tachycardia and orthostatic intolerance. While traditional inflammatory biomarkers tend to be normal, a subclinical inflammatory process may be present in POTS.PurposeWe aimed to analyse novel inflammatory biomarkers in POTS patients: Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF15), Neutrophi
The European spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus L.) is a major disturbance agent in Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst) forests in Europe and it is estimated that a changing climate will result in more severe outbreaks in the future. To reduce the risk of large outbreaks it is important to have methods that enable early detection of bark beetle attacks to help forest managers to prevent popula
Sustaining ecosystem services (ES) critical to human well-being is hindered by many practitioners lacking access to ES models (“the capacity gap”) or knowledge of the accuracy of available models (“the certainty gap”), especially in the world’s poorer regions. We developed ensembles of multiple models at an unprecedented global scale for five ES of high policy relevance. Ensembles were 2 to 14% mo
Energy balance closure is an important feature in studies of ecosystem exchanges of energy and greenhouse gases using the eddy covariance method. Previous analyses show that this is still a problem with imbalances in the order of 0.6–0.7 to full closure (for only a few sites). It has been suggested that mesoscale transport processes that are not captured by the eddy covariance measurements are the
Purpose: The glycosaminoglycans chondroitin sulfate (CS) and hyaluronic acid (HA) are important for the normal function of articular cartilage, and changes of their sulfation and concentration may play a role in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA). Therefore, these glycans may be clinically useful as biomarkers in OA management. The purpose of this study was to analyze the CS and HA pattern in
