PeerJ
type: channel
link: https://peerj.com/articles/
description: Articles published in PeerJ
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
publication name: PeerJ
issn: 2167-8359
items: Atherosclerosis, gut microbiome, and exercise in a meta-omics perspective: a literature review
items: Analysis of twelve genomes of the bacterium Kerstersia gyiorum from brown-throated sloths (Bradypus variegatus), the first from a non-human host
items: Preparation and characterization of vitamin E/calcium/soy protein isolate nanoparticles for soybean milk beverage fortification
items: Tailoring transcranial alternating current stimulation based on endogenous event-related P3 to modulate premature responses: a feasibility study
items: Relationship between intended force and actual force: comparison between athletes and non-athletes
items: Investigating mortality salience as a potential causal influence and moderator of responses to laboratory pain
items: Seasonal fluctuations of litter and soil Collembola and their drivers in rainforest and plantation systems
items: Health and ecological risk of heavy metals in agricultural soils related to Tungsten mining in Southern Jiangxi Province, China
items: Spatial habitat suitability prediction of essential oil wild plants on Indonesia’s degraded lands
items: Higher body condition with infection by Haemoproteus parasites in Bananaquits (Coereba flaveola)

Atherosclerosis, gut microbiome, and exercise in a meta-omics perspective: a literature review
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, significantly impacting public health. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases account for the majority of these deaths, with atherosclerosis marking the initial and most critical phase of their pathophysiological progression. There is a complex relationship between atherosclerosis, the gut microbiome’s composition and function, and the potential mediating role of exercise. The adaptability of the gut microbiome and the feasibility of exercise interventions present novel opportunities for therapeutic and preventative approaches. Methodology We conducted a comprehensive literature review using professional databases such as PubMed and Web of Science. This review focuses on the application of meta-omics techniques, particularly metagenomics and metabolomics, in studying the effects of exercise interventions on the gut microbiome and atherosclerosis. Results Meta-omics technologies offer unparalleled capabilities to explore the intricate connections between exercise, the microbiome, the metabolome, and cardiometabolic health. This review highlights the advancements in metagenomics and metabolomics, their applications in research, and examines how exercise influences the gut microbiome. We delve into the mechanisms connecting these elements from a metabolic perspective. Metagenomics provides insight into changes in microbial strains post-exercise, while metabolomics sheds light on the shifts in metabolites. Together, these approaches offer a comprehensive understanding of how exercise impacts atherosclerosis through specific mechanisms. Conclusions Exercise significantly influences atherosclerosis, with the gut microbiome serving as a critical intermediary. Meta-omics technology holds substantial promise for investigating the gut microbiome; however, its methodologies require further refinement. Additionally, there is a pressing need for more extensive cohort studies to enhance our comprehensio…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Haotian Tang
creator: Yanqing Huang
creator: Didi Yuan
creator: Junwen Liu
subject: Microbiology
subject: Cardiology
subject: Metabolic Sciences
subject: Sports Medicine
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17185
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Tang et al.
abstract: Background Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, significantly impacting public health. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases account for the majority of these deaths, with atherosclerosis marking the initial and most critical phase of their pathophysiological progression. There is a complex relationship between atherosclerosis, the gut microbiome’s composition and function, and the potential mediating role of exercise. The adaptability of the gut microbiome and the feasibility of exercise interventions present novel opportunities for therapeutic and preventative approaches. Methodology We conducted a comprehensive literature review using professional databases such as PubMed and Web of Science. This review focuses on the application of meta-omics techniques, particularly metagenomics and metabolomics, in studying the effects of exercise interventions on the gut microbiome and atherosclerosis. Results Meta-omics technologies offer unparalleled capabilities to explore the intricate connections between exercise, the microbiome, the metabolome, and cardiometabolic health. This review highlights the advancements in metagenomics and metabolomics, their applications in research, and examines how exercise influences the gut microbiome. We delve into the mechanisms connecting these elements from a metabolic perspective. Metagenomics provides insight into changes in microbial strains post-exercise, while metabolomics sheds light on the shifts in metabolites. Together, these approaches offer a comprehensive understanding of how exercise impacts atherosclerosis through specific mechanisms. Conclusions Exercise significantly influences atherosclerosis, with the gut microbiome serving as a critical intermediary. Meta-omics technology holds substantial promise for investigating the gut microbiome; however, its methodologies require further refinement. Additionally, there is a pressing need for more extensive cohort studies to enhance our comprehensio…
bibliographic citation: Tang et al. (2024) Atherosclerosis, gut microbiome, and exercise in a meta-omics perspective: a literature review. PeerJ 12:e17185 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17185
date submitted: 2023-12-14
date accepted: 2024-03-11
issued: 2024-04-04
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Tang
  given name: Haotian
author list: Agent
  family name: Huang
  given name: Yanqing
author list: Agent
  family name: Yuan
  given name: Didi
author list: Agent
  family name: Liu
  given name: Junwen
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17185
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-04
copyright: © 2024 Tang et al.
attribution name: Tang et al.

Analysis of twelve genomes of the bacterium Kerstersia gyiorum from brown-throated sloths (Bradypus variegatus), the first from a non-human host
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Kerstersia gyiorum is a Gram-negative bacterium found in various animals, including humans, where it has been associated with various infections. Knowledge of the basic biology of K. gyiorum is essential to understand the evolutionary strategies of niche adaptation and how this organism contributes to infectious diseases; however, genomic data about K. gyiorum is very limited, especially from non-human hosts. In this work, we sequenced 12 K. gyiorum genomes isolated from healthy free-living brown-throated sloths (Bradypus variegatus) in the Parque Estadual das Fontes do Ipiranga (São Paulo, Brazil), and compared them with genomes from isolates of human origin, in order to gain insights into genomic diversity, phylogeny, and host specialization of this species. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these K. gyiorum strains are structured according to host. Despite the fact that sloth isolates were sampled from a single geographic location, the intra-sloth K. gyiorum diversity was divided into three clusters, with differences of more than 1,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms between them, suggesting the circulation of various K. gyiorum lineages in sloths. Genes involved in mobilome and defense mechanisms against mobile genetic elements were the main source of gene content variation between isolates from different hosts. Sloth-specific K. gyiorum genome features include an IncN2 plasmid, a phage sequence, and a CRISPR-Cas system. The broad diversity of defense elements in K. gyiorum (14 systems) may prevent further mobile element flow and explain the low amount of mobile genetic elements in K. gyiorum genomes. Gene content variation may be important for the adaptation of K. gyiorum to different host niches. This study furthers our understanding of diversity, host adaptation, and evolution of K. gyiorum, by presenting and analyzing the first genomes of non-human isolates.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Dennis Carhuaricra-Huaman
creator: Irys H.L. Gonzalez
creator: Patricia L. Ramos
creator: Aline M. da Silva
creator: Joao C. Setubal
subject: Biodiversity
subject: Genomics
subject: Microbiology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17206
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Carhuaricra-Huaman et al.
abstract: Kerstersia gyiorum is a Gram-negative bacterium found in various animals, including humans, where it has been associated with various infections. Knowledge of the basic biology of K. gyiorum is essential to understand the evolutionary strategies of niche adaptation and how this organism contributes to infectious diseases; however, genomic data about K. gyiorum is very limited, especially from non-human hosts. In this work, we sequenced 12 K. gyiorum genomes isolated from healthy free-living brown-throated sloths (Bradypus variegatus) in the Parque Estadual das Fontes do Ipiranga (São Paulo, Brazil), and compared them with genomes from isolates of human origin, in order to gain insights into genomic diversity, phylogeny, and host specialization of this species. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these K. gyiorum strains are structured according to host. Despite the fact that sloth isolates were sampled from a single geographic location, the intra-sloth K. gyiorum diversity was divided into three clusters, with differences of more than 1,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms between them, suggesting the circulation of various K. gyiorum lineages in sloths. Genes involved in mobilome and defense mechanisms against mobile genetic elements were the main source of gene content variation between isolates from different hosts. Sloth-specific K. gyiorum genome features include an IncN2 plasmid, a phage sequence, and a CRISPR-Cas system. The broad diversity of defense elements in K. gyiorum (14 systems) may prevent further mobile element flow and explain the low amount of mobile genetic elements in K. gyiorum genomes. Gene content variation may be important for the adaptation of K. gyiorum to different host niches. This study furthers our understanding of diversity, host adaptation, and evolution of K. gyiorum, by presenting and analyzing the first genomes of non-human isolates.
bibliographic citation: Carhuaricra-Huaman et al. (2024) Analysis of twelve genomes of the bacterium Kerstersia gyiorum from brown-throated sloths (Bradypus variegatus), the first from a non-human host. PeerJ 12:e17206 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17206
date submitted: 2024-01-03
date accepted: 2024-03-18
issued: 2024-04-04
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Carhuaricra-Huaman
  given name: Dennis
author list: Agent
  family name: Gonzalez
  given name: Irys H.L.
author list: Agent
  family name: Ramos
  given name: Patricia L.
author list: Agent
  family name: da Silva
  given name: Aline M.
author list: Agent
  family name: Setubal
  given name: Joao C.
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17206
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-04
copyright: ©2024 Carhuaricra-Huaman et al.
attribution name: Carhuaricra-Huaman et al.

Preparation and characterization of vitamin E/calcium/soy protein isolate nanoparticles for soybean milk beverage fortification
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Soybean milk is a rich plant-based source of protein, and phenolic compounds. This study compared the nutritional value of soybean milk, flour, soy protein isolate (SPI) and evaluated the impact of prepared vitamin E/calcium salt/soy protein isolate nanoparticles (ECSPI-NPs) on fortification of developed soybean milk formulations. Results indicated that soybean flour protein content was 40.50 g/100 g, that fulfills 81% of the daily requirement (DV%), the unsaturated fatty acids (USFs), oleic and linoleic content was 21.98 and 56.7%, respectively, of total fatty acids content. In soybean milk, essential amino acids, threonine, leucine, lysine achieved 92.70, 90.81, 77.42% of amino acid scores (AAS) requirement values respectively. Ferulic acid was the main phenolic compound in soybean flour, milk and SPI (508.74, 13.28, 491.78 µg/g). Due to the moisture content of soybean milk (88.50%) against (7.10%) in soybean flour, the latest showed higher nutrients concentrations. The prepared calcium (20 mM/10 g SPI) and vitamin E (100 mg/g SPI) nanoparticles (ECSPI-NPs) exhibited that they were effectively synthesized under transmission electron microscope (TEM), stability in the zeta sizer analysis and safety up to IC50 value (202 ug/mL) on vero cell line. ECSPI-NPs fortification (NECM) enhanced significantly phenolic content (149.49 mg/mL), taste (6.10), texture (6.70) and consumer overall acceptance (6.54). Obtained results encourage the application of the prepared ECSPI-NPs for further functional foods applications.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Heba A. I. M. Taha
creator: Neveen F. M. Agamy
creator: Tarek N. Soliman
creator: Nashwa M. Younes
creator: Hesham Ali El-Enshasy
creator: Amira M. G. Darwish
subject: Cell Biology
subject: Food Science and Technology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17007
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Taha et al.
abstract: Soybean milk is a rich plant-based source of protein, and phenolic compounds. This study compared the nutritional value of soybean milk, flour, soy protein isolate (SPI) and evaluated the impact of prepared vitamin E/calcium salt/soy protein isolate nanoparticles (ECSPI-NPs) on fortification of developed soybean milk formulations. Results indicated that soybean flour protein content was 40.50 g/100 g, that fulfills 81% of the daily requirement (DV%), the unsaturated fatty acids (USFs), oleic and linoleic content was 21.98 and 56.7%, respectively, of total fatty acids content. In soybean milk, essential amino acids, threonine, leucine, lysine achieved 92.70, 90.81, 77.42% of amino acid scores (AAS) requirement values respectively. Ferulic acid was the main phenolic compound in soybean flour, milk and SPI (508.74, 13.28, 491.78 µg/g). Due to the moisture content of soybean milk (88.50%) against (7.10%) in soybean flour, the latest showed higher nutrients concentrations. The prepared calcium (20 mM/10 g SPI) and vitamin E (100 mg/g SPI) nanoparticles (ECSPI-NPs) exhibited that they were effectively synthesized under transmission electron microscope (TEM), stability in the zeta sizer analysis and safety up to IC50 value (202 ug/mL) on vero cell line. ECSPI-NPs fortification (NECM) enhanced significantly phenolic content (149.49 mg/mL), taste (6.10), texture (6.70) and consumer overall acceptance (6.54). Obtained results encourage the application of the prepared ECSPI-NPs for further functional foods applications.
bibliographic citation: Taha et al. (2024) Preparation and characterization of vitamin E/calcium/soy protein isolate nanoparticles for soybean milk beverage fortification. PeerJ 12:e17007 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17007
date submitted: 2023-10-12
date accepted: 2024-02-05
issued: 2024-04-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Taha
  given name: Heba A. I. M.
author list: Agent
  family name: Agamy
  given name: Neveen F. M.
author list: Agent
  family name: Soliman
  given name: Tarek N.
author list: Agent
  family name: Younes
  given name: Nashwa M.
author list: Agent
  family name: El-Enshasy
  given name: Hesham Ali
author list: Agent
  family name: Darwish
  given name: Amira M. G.
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17007
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-03
copyright: © 2024 Taha et al.
attribution name: Taha et al.

Tailoring transcranial alternating current stimulation based on endogenous event-related P3 to modulate premature responses: a feasibility study
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) is a brain stimulation method for modulating ongoing endogenous oscillatory activity at specified frequency during sensory and cognitive processes. Given the overlap between event-related potentials (ERPs) and event-related oscillations (EROs), ERPs can be studied as putative biomarkers of the effects of tACS in the brain during cognitive/sensory task performance. Objective This preliminary study aimed to test the feasibility of individually tailored tACS based on individual P3 (latency and frequency) elicited during a cued premature response task. Thus, tACS frequency was individually tailored to match target-P3 ERO for each participant. Likewise, the target onset in the task was adjusted to match the tACS phase and target-P3 latency. Methods Twelve healthy volunteers underwent tACS in two separate sessions while performing a premature response task. Target-P3 latency and ERO were calculated in a baseline block during the first session to allow a posterior synchronization between the tACS and the endogenous oscillatory activity. The cue and target-P3 amplitudes, delta/theta ERO, and power spectral density (PSD) were evaluated pre and post-tACS blocks. Results Target-P3 amplitude significantly increased after activetACS, when compared to sham. Evoked-delta during cue-P3 was decreased after tACS. No effects were found for delta ERO during target-P3 nor for the PSD and behavioral outcomes. Conclusion The present findings highlight the possible effect of phase synchronization between individualized tACS parameters and endogenous oscillatory activity, which may result in an enhancement of the underlying process (i.e., an increase of target-P3). However, an unsuccessful synchronization between tACS and EEG activity might also result in a decrease in the evoked-delta activity during cue-P3. Further studies are needed to optimize the parameters of endogenous activity and tACS synchronization. The implications o…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Augusto J. Mendes
creator: Alberto Lema
creator: Sandra Carvalho
creator: Jorge Leite
subject: Neuroscience
subject: Psychiatry and Psychology
subject: Human-Computer Interaction
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17144
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Mendes et al.
abstract: Background Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) is a brain stimulation method for modulating ongoing endogenous oscillatory activity at specified frequency during sensory and cognitive processes. Given the overlap between event-related potentials (ERPs) and event-related oscillations (EROs), ERPs can be studied as putative biomarkers of the effects of tACS in the brain during cognitive/sensory task performance. Objective This preliminary study aimed to test the feasibility of individually tailored tACS based on individual P3 (latency and frequency) elicited during a cued premature response task. Thus, tACS frequency was individually tailored to match target-P3 ERO for each participant. Likewise, the target onset in the task was adjusted to match the tACS phase and target-P3 latency. Methods Twelve healthy volunteers underwent tACS in two separate sessions while performing a premature response task. Target-P3 latency and ERO were calculated in a baseline block during the first session to allow a posterior synchronization between the tACS and the endogenous oscillatory activity. The cue and target-P3 amplitudes, delta/theta ERO, and power spectral density (PSD) were evaluated pre and post-tACS blocks. Results Target-P3 amplitude significantly increased after activetACS, when compared to sham. Evoked-delta during cue-P3 was decreased after tACS. No effects were found for delta ERO during target-P3 nor for the PSD and behavioral outcomes. Conclusion The present findings highlight the possible effect of phase synchronization between individualized tACS parameters and endogenous oscillatory activity, which may result in an enhancement of the underlying process (i.e., an increase of target-P3). However, an unsuccessful synchronization between tACS and EEG activity might also result in a decrease in the evoked-delta activity during cue-P3. Further studies are needed to optimize the parameters of endogenous activity and tACS synchronization. The implications o…
bibliographic citation: Mendes et al. (2024) Tailoring transcranial alternating current stimulation based on endogenous event-related P3 to modulate premature responses: a feasibility study. PeerJ 12:e17144 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17144
date submitted: 2023-04-05
date accepted: 2024-02-29
issued: 2024-04-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Mendes
  given name: Augusto J.
author list: Agent
  family name: Lema
  given name: Alberto
author list: Agent
  family name: Carvalho
  given name: Sandra
author list: Agent
  family name: Leite
  given name: Jorge
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17144
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-03
copyright: ©2024 Mendes et al.
attribution name: Mendes et al.

Relationship between intended force and actual force: comparison between athletes and non-athletes
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate whether athletes (ATHL) and non-athletes (NON-ATHL) individuals had similar accuracy in matching intended to actual force during ballistic (BAL) and tonic (TON) isometric contractions. In this cross-sectional study, the subjects were divided into ATHL (n = 20; 22.4 ± 2.3 yrs; 73.2 ± 15.7 kg; 1.76 ± 0.08 m) and NON-ATHL (n = 20; 24.6 ± 2.4 yrs; 68.2 ± 15.0 kg; 1.73 ± 0.1 m) groups. The isometric quadriceps strength was measured with a load cell applied to a custom-built chair. For each condition, subjects performed at first three maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) as reference. Then, subjects had to match three intended force intensities expressed in percentage of the MVIC (i.e., 25%, 50%, and 75%) without any external feedback. Subjects performed three trials for each force intensity. The accuracy (AC) was calculated as the absolute difference in percentage between the intended and the actual force. A Likert scale was administered for each trial to assess the subjective matching between the intended and the actual force. Statistical analysis showed that the ATHL group was more accurate (p < 0.001) than the NON-ATHL group. In contrast, the AC (p < 0.001) was lower when the force intensities increased independently from the group. Moreover, significantly higher AC (p < 0.001) and lower aggregate Likert scores (p < 0.001) were found in BAL than TON conditions. These results suggest that (i) sports practice could enhance muscle recruitment strategies by increasing the AC in the isometric task; (ii) differences between intended and actual force appeared to be intensity-dependent with lower AC at high force intensities; (iii) different control systems act in modulating BAL and TON contractions.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Alex Rizzato
creator: Giovanni Cantarella
creator: Elisa Basso
creator: Antonio Paoli
creator: Luca Rotundo
creator: Patrizia Bisiacchi
creator: Giuseppe Marcolin
subject: Kinesiology
subject: Biomechanics
subject: Sports Medicine
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17156
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Rizzato et al.
abstract: This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate whether athletes (ATHL) and non-athletes (NON-ATHL) individuals had similar accuracy in matching intended to actual force during ballistic (BAL) and tonic (TON) isometric contractions. In this cross-sectional study, the subjects were divided into ATHL (n = 20; 22.4 ± 2.3 yrs; 73.2 ± 15.7 kg; 1.76 ± 0.08 m) and NON-ATHL (n = 20; 24.6 ± 2.4 yrs; 68.2 ± 15.0 kg; 1.73 ± 0.1 m) groups. The isometric quadriceps strength was measured with a load cell applied to a custom-built chair. For each condition, subjects performed at first three maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) as reference. Then, subjects had to match three intended force intensities expressed in percentage of the MVIC (i.e., 25%, 50%, and 75%) without any external feedback. Subjects performed three trials for each force intensity. The accuracy (AC) was calculated as the absolute difference in percentage between the intended and the actual force. A Likert scale was administered for each trial to assess the subjective matching between the intended and the actual force. Statistical analysis showed that the ATHL group was more accurate (p < 0.001) than the NON-ATHL group. In contrast, the AC (p < 0.001) was lower when the force intensities increased independently from the group. Moreover, significantly higher AC (p < 0.001) and lower aggregate Likert scores (p < 0.001) were found in BAL than TON conditions. These results suggest that (i) sports practice could enhance muscle recruitment strategies by increasing the AC in the isometric task; (ii) differences between intended and actual force appeared to be intensity-dependent with lower AC at high force intensities; (iii) different control systems act in modulating BAL and TON contractions.
bibliographic citation: Rizzato et al. (2024) Relationship between intended force and actual force: comparison between athletes and non-athletes. PeerJ 12:e17156 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17156
date submitted: 2023-11-10
date accepted: 2024-03-04
issued: 2024-04-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Rizzato
  given name: Alex
author list: Agent
  family name: Cantarella
  given name: Giovanni
author list: Agent
  family name: Basso
  given name: Elisa
author list: Agent
  family name: Paoli
  given name: Antonio
author list: Agent
  family name: Rotundo
  given name: Luca
author list: Agent
  family name: Bisiacchi
  given name: Patrizia
author list: Agent
  family name: Marcolin
  given name: Giuseppe
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17156
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-03
copyright: ©2024 Rizzato et al.
attribution name: Rizzato et al.

Investigating mortality salience as a potential causal influence and moderator of responses to laboratory pain
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Because pain can have profound ramifications for quality of life and daily functioning, understanding nuances in the interplay of psychosocial experiences with pain perception is vital for effective pain management. In separate lines of research, pain resilience and mortality salience have emerged as potentially important psychological correlates of reduced pain severity and increased tolerance of pain. However, to date, there has been a paucity of research examining potentially interactive effects of these factors on pain perception. To address this gap, the present experiment investigated mortality salience as a causal influence on tolerance of laboratory pain and a moderator of associations between pain resilience and pain tolerance within a Chinese sample. Methods Participants were healthy young Chinese adults (86 women, 84 men) who first completed a brief initial cold pressor test (CPT) followed by measures of demographics and pain resilience. Subsequently, participants randomly assigned to a mortality salience (MS) condition completed two open-ended essay questions in which they wrote about their death as well as a death anxiety scale while those randomly assigned to a control condition completed analogous tasks about watching television. Finally, all participants engaged in a delay task and a second CPT designed to measure post-manipulation pain tolerance and subjective pain intensity levels. Results MS condition cohorts showed greater pain tolerance than controls on the post-manipulation CPT, though pain intensity levels did not differ between groups. Moderator analyses indicated that the relationship between the behavior perseverance facet of pain resilience and pain tolerance was significantly stronger among MS condition participants than controls. Conclusions This experiment is the first to document potential causal effects of MS on pain tolerance and Ms as a moderator of the association between self-reported behavior perseverance and behaviora…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Beibei You
creator: Hongwei Wen
creator: Todd Jackson
subject: Anesthesiology and Pain Management
subject: Psychiatry and Psychology
subject: Rehabilitation
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17204
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 You et al.
abstract: Background Because pain can have profound ramifications for quality of life and daily functioning, understanding nuances in the interplay of psychosocial experiences with pain perception is vital for effective pain management. In separate lines of research, pain resilience and mortality salience have emerged as potentially important psychological correlates of reduced pain severity and increased tolerance of pain. However, to date, there has been a paucity of research examining potentially interactive effects of these factors on pain perception. To address this gap, the present experiment investigated mortality salience as a causal influence on tolerance of laboratory pain and a moderator of associations between pain resilience and pain tolerance within a Chinese sample. Methods Participants were healthy young Chinese adults (86 women, 84 men) who first completed a brief initial cold pressor test (CPT) followed by measures of demographics and pain resilience. Subsequently, participants randomly assigned to a mortality salience (MS) condition completed two open-ended essay questions in which they wrote about their death as well as a death anxiety scale while those randomly assigned to a control condition completed analogous tasks about watching television. Finally, all participants engaged in a delay task and a second CPT designed to measure post-manipulation pain tolerance and subjective pain intensity levels. Results MS condition cohorts showed greater pain tolerance than controls on the post-manipulation CPT, though pain intensity levels did not differ between groups. Moderator analyses indicated that the relationship between the behavior perseverance facet of pain resilience and pain tolerance was significantly stronger among MS condition participants than controls. Conclusions This experiment is the first to document potential causal effects of MS on pain tolerance and Ms as a moderator of the association between self-reported behavior perseverance and behaviora…
bibliographic citation: You et al. (2024) Investigating mortality salience as a potential causal influence and moderator of responses to laboratory pain. PeerJ 12:e17204 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17204
date submitted: 2023-08-18
date accepted: 2024-03-15
issued: 2024-04-03
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: You
  given name: Beibei
author list: Agent
  family name: Wen
  given name: Hongwei
author list: Agent
  family name: Jackson
  given name: Todd
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17204
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-03
copyright: © 2024 You et al.
attribution name: You et al.

Seasonal fluctuations of litter and soil Collembola and their drivers in rainforest and plantation systems
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Rainforest conversion and expansion of plantations in tropical regions change local microclimate and are associated with biodiversity decline. Tropical soils are a hotspot of animal biodiversity and may sensitively respond to microclimate changes, but these responses remain unexplored. To address this knowledge gap, here we investigated seasonal fluctuations in density and community composition of Collembola, a dominant group of soil invertebrates, in rainforest, and in rubber and oil palm plantations in Jambi province (Sumatra, Indonesia). Across land-use systems, the density of Collembola in the litter was at a maximum at the beginning of the wet season, whereas in soil it generally varied little. The community composition of Collembola changed with season and the differences between land-use systems were most pronounced at the beginning of the dry season. Water content, pH, fungal and bacterial biomarkers, C/N ratio and root biomass were identified as factors related to seasonal variations in species composition of Collembola across different land-use systems. We conclude that (1) conversion of rainforest into plantation systems aggravates detrimental effects of low moisture during the dry season on soil invertebrate communities; (2) Collembola communities are driven by common environmental factors across land-use systems, with water content, pH and food availability being most important; (3) Collembola in litter are more sensitive to climatic variations than those in soil. Overall, the results document the sensitivity of tropical soil invertebrate communities to seasonal climatic variations, which intensifies the effects of the conversion of rainforest into plantation systems on soil biodiversity.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Winda Ika Susanti
creator: Valentyna Krashevska
creator: Rahayu Widyastuti
creator: Christian Stiegler
creator: Dodo Gunawan
creator: Stefan Scheu
creator: Anton M. Potapov
subject: Biodiversity
subject: Ecology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17125
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Susanti et al.
abstract: Rainforest conversion and expansion of plantations in tropical regions change local microclimate and are associated with biodiversity decline. Tropical soils are a hotspot of animal biodiversity and may sensitively respond to microclimate changes, but these responses remain unexplored. To address this knowledge gap, here we investigated seasonal fluctuations in density and community composition of Collembola, a dominant group of soil invertebrates, in rainforest, and in rubber and oil palm plantations in Jambi province (Sumatra, Indonesia). Across land-use systems, the density of Collembola in the litter was at a maximum at the beginning of the wet season, whereas in soil it generally varied little. The community composition of Collembola changed with season and the differences between land-use systems were most pronounced at the beginning of the dry season. Water content, pH, fungal and bacterial biomarkers, C/N ratio and root biomass were identified as factors related to seasonal variations in species composition of Collembola across different land-use systems. We conclude that (1) conversion of rainforest into plantation systems aggravates detrimental effects of low moisture during the dry season on soil invertebrate communities; (2) Collembola communities are driven by common environmental factors across land-use systems, with water content, pH and food availability being most important; (3) Collembola in litter are more sensitive to climatic variations than those in soil. Overall, the results document the sensitivity of tropical soil invertebrate communities to seasonal climatic variations, which intensifies the effects of the conversion of rainforest into plantation systems on soil biodiversity.
bibliographic citation: Susanti et al. (2024) Seasonal fluctuations of litter and soil Collembola and their drivers in rainforest and plantation systems. PeerJ 12:e17125 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17125
date submitted: 2023-09-26
date accepted: 2024-02-26
issued: 2024-04-01
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Susanti
  given name: Winda Ika
author list: Agent
  family name: Krashevska
  given name: Valentyna
author list: Agent
  family name: Widyastuti
  given name: Rahayu
author list: Agent
  family name: Stiegler
  given name: Christian
author list: Agent
  family name: Gunawan
  given name: Dodo
author list: Agent
  family name: Scheu
  given name: Stefan
author list: Agent
  family name: Potapov
  given name: Anton M.
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17125
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-01
copyright: © 2024 Susanti et al.
attribution name: Susanti et al.

Health and ecological risk of heavy metals in agricultural soils related to Tungsten mining in Southern Jiangxi Province, China
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Dayu County, a major tungsten producer in China, experiences severe heavy metal pollution. This study evaluated the pollution status, the accumulation characteristics in paddy rice, and the potential ecological risks of heavy metals in agricutural soils near tungsten mining areas of Dayu County. Furthermore, the impacts of soil properties on the accumulation of heavy metals in soil were explored. Methods The geo-accumulation index (Igeo), the contamination factor (CF), and the pollution load index (PLI) were used to evaluate the pollution status of metals (As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Pb, Mo, W, and Zn) in soils. The ecological risk factor (RI) was used to assess the potential ecological risks of heavy metals in soil. The health risks and accumulation of heavy metals in paddy rice were evaluated using the health risk index and the translocation factor (TF), respectively. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to discuss the influence of soil factors on heavy metal contents in soil. Results The concentrations of metals exceeded the respective average background values for soils (As: 10.4, Cd: 0.10, Cu: 20.8, Cr: 48.0, Pb: 32.1, Mo: 0.30, W: 4.93, Zn: 69.0, mg/kg). The levels of As, Cd, Mo, and tungsten(W) exceeded the risk screening values for Chinese agricultural soil contamination and the Dutch standard. The mean concentrations of the eight tested heavy metals followed the order FJ-S > QL > FJ-N > HL > CJ-E > CJ-W, with a significant distribution throughout the Zhangjiang River basin. Heavy metals, especially Cd, were enriched in paddy rice. The Igeo and CF assessment indicated that the soil was moderately to heavily polluted by Mo, W and Cd, and the PLI assessment indicated the the sites of FJ-S and QL were extremely severely polluted due to the contribution of Cd, Mo and W. The RI results indicated that Cd posed the highest risk near tungsten mining areas. The non-carcinogenic and total carcinogenic risks were above the threshold values (non-carcinogenic risk b…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Jinhu Lai
creator: Yan Ni
creator: Jinying Xu
creator: Daishe Wu
subject: Agricultural Science
subject: Soil Science
subject: Biogeochemistry
subject: Environmental Contamination and Remediation
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17200
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Lai et al.
abstract: Background Dayu County, a major tungsten producer in China, experiences severe heavy metal pollution. This study evaluated the pollution status, the accumulation characteristics in paddy rice, and the potential ecological risks of heavy metals in agricutural soils near tungsten mining areas of Dayu County. Furthermore, the impacts of soil properties on the accumulation of heavy metals in soil were explored. Methods The geo-accumulation index (Igeo), the contamination factor (CF), and the pollution load index (PLI) were used to evaluate the pollution status of metals (As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Pb, Mo, W, and Zn) in soils. The ecological risk factor (RI) was used to assess the potential ecological risks of heavy metals in soil. The health risks and accumulation of heavy metals in paddy rice were evaluated using the health risk index and the translocation factor (TF), respectively. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to discuss the influence of soil factors on heavy metal contents in soil. Results The concentrations of metals exceeded the respective average background values for soils (As: 10.4, Cd: 0.10, Cu: 20.8, Cr: 48.0, Pb: 32.1, Mo: 0.30, W: 4.93, Zn: 69.0, mg/kg). The levels of As, Cd, Mo, and tungsten(W) exceeded the risk screening values for Chinese agricultural soil contamination and the Dutch standard. The mean concentrations of the eight tested heavy metals followed the order FJ-S > QL > FJ-N > HL > CJ-E > CJ-W, with a significant distribution throughout the Zhangjiang River basin. Heavy metals, especially Cd, were enriched in paddy rice. The Igeo and CF assessment indicated that the soil was moderately to heavily polluted by Mo, W and Cd, and the PLI assessment indicated the the sites of FJ-S and QL were extremely severely polluted due to the contribution of Cd, Mo and W. The RI results indicated that Cd posed the highest risk near tungsten mining areas. The non-carcinogenic and total carcinogenic risks were above the threshold values (non-carcinogenic risk b…
bibliographic citation: Lai et al. (2024) Health and ecological risk of heavy metals in agricultural soils related to Tungsten mining in Southern Jiangxi Province, China. PeerJ 12:e17200 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17200
date submitted: 2023-09-07
date accepted: 2024-03-14
issued: 2024-04-01
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Lai
  given name: Jinhu
author list: Agent
  family name: Ni
  given name: Yan
author list: Agent
  family name: Xu
  given name: Jinying
author list: Agent
  family name: Wu
  given name: Daishe
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17200
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-01
copyright: © 2024 Lai et al.
attribution name: Lai et al.

Spatial habitat suitability prediction of essential oil wild plants on Indonesia’s degraded lands
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Background Essential oils are natural products of aromatic plants with numerous uses. Essential oils have been traded worldwide and utilized in various industries. Indonesia is the sixth largest essential oil producing country, but land degradation is a risk to the continuing extraction and utilization of natural products. Production of essential oil plants on degraded lands is a potential strategy to mitigate this risk. This study aimed to identify degraded lands in Indonesia that could be suitable habitats for five wild native essential oil producing plants, namely Acronychia pedunculata (L.) Miq., Baeckea frutescens L., Cynometra cauliflora L., Magnolia montana (Blume) Figlar, and Magnolia sumatrana var. glauca (Blume) Figlar & Noot using various species distribution models. Methods The habitat suitability of these species was predicted by comparing ten species distribution models, including Bioclim, classification and regression trees (CART), flexible discriminant analysis (FDA), Maxlike, boosted regression trees (BRT), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), generalized linear models (GLM), Ranger, support vector machine (SVM), and Random Forests (RF). Bioclimatic, topographic and soil variables were used as the predictors of the model habitat suitability. The models were evaluated according to their AUC and TSS metrics. Model selection was based on ranking performance. The total suitable area for five native essential oil producing plants in Indonesia’s degraded lands was derived by overlaying the models with degraded land locations. Results The habitat suitability model for these species was well predicted with an AUC value >0.8 and a TSS value >0.7. The most important predictor variables affecting the habitat suitability of these species are mean temperature of wettest quarter, precipitation seasonality, precipitation of warmest quarter, precipitation of coldest quarter, cation exchange capacity, nitrogen, sand, and soil organic carbon. C. cauliflor…
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Elga Renjana
creator: Elok Rifqi Firdiana
creator: Melisnawati H. Angio
creator: Linda Wige Ningrum
creator: Intani Quarta Lailaty
creator: Apriyono Rahadiantoro
creator: Irfan Martiansyah
creator: Rizmoon Zulkarnaen
creator: Ayyu Rahayu
creator: Puguh Dwi Raharjo
creator: Ilham Kurnia Abywijaya
creator: Didi Usmadi
creator: Rosniati Apriani Risna
creator: Wendell P. Cropper, Jr
creator: Angga Yudaputra
subject: Biogeography
subject: Conservation Biology
subject: Ecology
subject: Plant Science
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.17210
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Renjana et al.
abstract: Background Essential oils are natural products of aromatic plants with numerous uses. Essential oils have been traded worldwide and utilized in various industries. Indonesia is the sixth largest essential oil producing country, but land degradation is a risk to the continuing extraction and utilization of natural products. Production of essential oil plants on degraded lands is a potential strategy to mitigate this risk. This study aimed to identify degraded lands in Indonesia that could be suitable habitats for five wild native essential oil producing plants, namely Acronychia pedunculata (L.) Miq., Baeckea frutescens L., Cynometra cauliflora L., Magnolia montana (Blume) Figlar, and Magnolia sumatrana var. glauca (Blume) Figlar & Noot using various species distribution models. Methods The habitat suitability of these species was predicted by comparing ten species distribution models, including Bioclim, classification and regression trees (CART), flexible discriminant analysis (FDA), Maxlike, boosted regression trees (BRT), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), generalized linear models (GLM), Ranger, support vector machine (SVM), and Random Forests (RF). Bioclimatic, topographic and soil variables were used as the predictors of the model habitat suitability. The models were evaluated according to their AUC and TSS metrics. Model selection was based on ranking performance. The total suitable area for five native essential oil producing plants in Indonesia’s degraded lands was derived by overlaying the models with degraded land locations. Results The habitat suitability model for these species was well predicted with an AUC value >0.8 and a TSS value >0.7. The most important predictor variables affecting the habitat suitability of these species are mean temperature of wettest quarter, precipitation seasonality, precipitation of warmest quarter, precipitation of coldest quarter, cation exchange capacity, nitrogen, sand, and soil organic carbon. C. cauliflor…
bibliographic citation: Renjana et al. (2024) Spatial habitat suitability prediction of essential oil wild plants on Indonesia’s degraded lands. PeerJ 12:e17210 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17210
date submitted: 2023-11-08
date accepted: 2024-03-18
issued: 2024-04-01
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0
author list: Agent
  family name: Renjana
  given name: Elga
author list: Agent
  family name: Firdiana
  given name: Elok Rifqi
author list: Agent
  family name: Angio
  given name: Melisnawati H.
author list: Agent
  family name: Ningrum
  given name: Linda Wige
author list: Agent
  family name: Lailaty
  given name: Intani Quarta
author list: Agent
  family name: Rahadiantoro
  given name: Apriyono
author list: Agent
  family name: Martiansyah
  given name: Irfan
author list: Agent
  family name: Zulkarnaen
  given name: Rizmoon
author list: Agent
  family name: Rahayu
  given name: Ayyu
author list: Agent
  family name: Raharjo
  given name: Puguh Dwi
author list: Agent
  family name: Abywijaya
  given name: Ilham Kurnia
author list: Agent
  family name: Usmadi
  given name: Didi
author list: Agent
  family name: Risna
  given name: Rosniati Apriani
author list: Agent
  family name: Cropper, Jr
  given name: Wendell P.
author list: Agent
  family name: Yudaputra
  given name: Angga
doi: 10.7717/peerj.17210
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-04-01
copyright: ©2024 Renjana et al.
attribution name: Renjana et al.

Higher body condition with infection by Haemoproteus parasites in Bananaquits (Coereba flaveola)
type: item
type: AcademicArticle
description: Parasite transmission is a heterogenous process in host-parasite interactions. This heterogeneity is particularly apparent in vector-borne parasite transmission where the vector adds an additional level of complexity. Haemosporidian parasites, a widespread protist, cause a malaria-like disease in birds globally, but we still have much to learn about the consequences of infection to hosts’ health. In the Caribbean, where malarial parasites are endemic, studying host-parasites interactions may give us important insights about energetic trade-offs involved in malarial parasites infections in birds. In this study, we tested the consequences of Haemoproteus infection on the Bananaquit, a resident species of Puerto Rico. We also tested for potential sources of individual heterogeneity in the consequences of infection such as host age and sex. To quantify the consequences of infection to hosts’ health we compared three complementary body condition indices between infected and uninfected individuals. Our results showed that Bananaquits infected by Haemoproteus had higher body condition than uninfected individuals. This result was consistent among the three body condition indices. Still, we found no clear evidence that this effect was mediated by host age or sex. We discuss a set of non-mutually exclusive hypotheses that may explain this pattern including metabolic syndrome, immunological responses leading to host tolerance or resistance to infection, and potential changes in consumption rates. Overall, our results suggest that other mechanisms, may drive the consequences of avian malarial infection.
format: application/pdf
format: text/html
creator: Nicole A. Gutiérrez-Ramos
creator: Miguel A. Acevedo
subject: Ecology
subject: Parasitology
subject: Zoology
description: doi:10.7717/peerj.16361
publisher: PeerJ Inc.
rights: © 2024 Gutiérrez-Ramos and Acevedo
abstract: Parasite transmission is a heterogenous process in host-parasite interactions. This heterogeneity is particularly apparent in vector-borne parasite transmission where the vector adds an additional level of complexity. Haemosporidian parasites, a widespread protist, cause a malaria-like disease in birds globally, but we still have much to learn about the consequences of infection to hosts’ health. In the Caribbean, where malarial parasites are endemic, studying host-parasites interactions may give us important insights about energetic trade-offs involved in malarial parasites infections in birds. In this study, we tested the consequences of Haemoproteus infection on the Bananaquit, a resident species of Puerto Rico. We also tested for potential sources of individual heterogeneity in the consequences of infection such as host age and sex. To quantify the consequences of infection to hosts’ health we compared three complementary body condition indices between infected and uninfected individuals. Our results showed that Bananaquits infected by Haemoproteus had higher body condition than uninfected individuals. This result was consistent among the three body condition indices. Still, we found no clear evidence that this effect was mediated by host age or sex. We discuss a set of non-mutually exclusive hypotheses that may explain this pattern including metabolic syndrome, immunological responses leading to host tolerance or resistance to infection, and potential changes in consumption rates. Overall, our results suggest that other mechanisms, may drive the consequences of avian malarial infection.
bibliographic citation: Gutiérrez-Ramos et al. (2024) Higher body condition with infection by Haemoproteus parasites in Bananaquits (Coereba flaveola). PeerJ 12:e16361 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.16361
date submitted: 2022-12-28
date accepted: 2023-10-05
issued: 2024-03-29
is part of: PeerJ
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
author list: Agent
  family name: Gutiérrez-Ramos
  given name: Nicole A.
author list: Agent
  family name: Acevedo
  given name: Miguel A.
doi: 10.7717/peerj.16361
volume: 12
issn: 2167-8359
publication name: PeerJ
publication date: 2024-03-29
copyright: © 2024 Gutiérrez-Ramos and Acevedo
attribution name: Gutiérrez-Ramos and Acevedo

PeerJ
type: Periodical
uri: PeerJ
issn: 2167-8359