| 1. |
- Bruckner, Tim A., et al.
(författare)
-
Culled males, infant mortality and reproductive success in a pre-industrial Finnish population
- 2015
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Biological Sciences. - : The Royal Society. - 0962-8452 .- 1471-2954. ; 282:1799
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Theoretical and empirical literature asserts that the sex ratio (i.e. M/F) at birth gauges the strength of selection in utero and cohort quality of males that survive to birth. We report the first individual-level test in humans, using detailed life-history data, of the 'culled cohort' hypothesis that males born to low annual sex ratio cohorts show lower than expected infant mortality and greater than expected lifetime reproductive success. We applied time-series and structural equation methods to a unique multi-generational dataset of a natural fertility population in nineteenth century Finland. We find that, consistent with culled cohorts, a 1 s.d. decline in the annual cohort sex ratio precedes an 8% decrease in the risk of male infant mortality. Males born to lower cohort sex ratios also successfully raised 4% more offspring to reproductive age than did males born to higher cohort sex ratios. The offspring result, however, falls just outside conventional levels of statistical significance. In historical Finland, the cohort sex ratio gauges selection against males in utero and predicts male infant mortality. The reproductive success findings, however, provide weak support for an evolutionarily adaptive explanation of male culling in utero.
|
|
| 2. |
- Helle, Anne, et al.
(författare)
-
Novel, dynamic on-line analytical separation system for dissolution of drugs from poly(lactic acid) nanoparticles
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Analysis. - : Elsevier. - 0731-7085 .- 1873-264X. ; 51:1, s. 125-130
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A novel method for investigating drug release in a dynamic manner from nanoparticles including, but not limited to, biodegradable poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is reported. The PLA nanoparticles were prepared by the nanoprecipitation method. Two poorly soluble drugs, beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) and indomethacin, were encapsulated into PLA nanoparticles, and their dissolution from the nanoparticles were followed in a dynamic way. The on-line method comprised a short column (vessel) packed with the PLA nanoparticles, on-line connected to an analytical liquid chromatographic column via a multiport switching valve equipped with two loops. The system allowed monitoring of the drug release profiles in real time, and the conditions for the drug release could be precisely controlled and easily changed. The effects of solvent composition and temperature on the rate of dissolution of the drugs from the PLA nanoparticles were investigated. The system proved to be linear for the drugs tested over the concentration range 10-3000 ng (n = 6, R(2) = 0.999 and 0.997 for indomethacin and beclomethasone, respectively) and repeatable (RSD of peak areas <0.5%). The recoveries of the dissolution study were quantitative (120 and 103% for indomethacin and beclomethasone, respectively).
|
|
| 3. |
- Selonen, Vesa, et al.
(författare)
-
Identifying the paths of climate effects on population dynamics: dynamic and multilevel structural equation model around the annual cycle
- 2021
-
Ingår i: Oecologia. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0029-8549 .- 1432-1939. ; 195:2, s. 525-538
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- How environmental factors influence population dynamics in long-distance migrants is complicated by the spatiotemporal diversity of the environment the individuals experience during the annual cycle. The effects of weather on several different aspects of life history have been well studied, but a better understanding is needed on how weather affects population dynamics through the different associated traits. We utilise 77 years of data from pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca), to identify the most relevant climate signals associated with population growth rate. The strongest signals on population growth were observed from climate during periods when the birds were not present in the focal location. The population decline was associated with increasing precipitation in the African non-breeding quarters in the autumn (near the arrival of migrants) and with increasing winter temperature along the migration route (before migration). The number of fledglings was associated positively with increasing winter temperature in non-breeding area and negatively with increasing winter temperature in Europe. These possible carry-over effects did not arise via timing of breeding or clutch size but the exact mechanism remains to be revealed in future studies. High population density and low fledgling production were the intrinsic factors reducing the breeding population. We conclude that weather during all seasons has the potential to affect the reproductive success or population growth rate of this species. Our results show how weather can influence the population dynamics of a migratory species through multiple pathways, even at times of the annual cycle when the birds are in a different location than the climate signal.
|
|
| 4. |
- Tuominen, Laura S., et al.
(författare)
-
Structural equation modeling reveals decoupling of ecological and self-perceived outcomes in a garden box social-ecological system
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 12:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- It is well known that green urban commons enhance mental and physical well-being and improve local biodiversity. We aim to investigate how these outcomes are related in an urban system and which variables are associated with better outcomes. We model the outcomes of an urban common—box gardening—by applying the Social-Ecological Systems (SES) framework. We expand the SES framework by analyzing it from the perspective of social evolution theory. The system was studied empirically through field inventories and questionnaires and modeled quantitatively by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). This method offers powerful statistical models of complex social-ecological systems. Our results show that objectively evaluated ecological outcomes and self-perceived outcomes are decoupled: gardening groups that successfully govern the natural resource ecologically do not necessarily report many social, ecological, or individual benefits, and vice versa. Social capital, box location, gardener concerns, and starting year influenced the changes in the outcomes. In addition, the positive association of frequent interactions with higher self-perceived outcomes, and lack of such association with relatedness of group members suggests that reciprocity rather than kin selection explains cooperation. Our findings exemplify the importance of understanding natural resource systems at a very low “grassroot” level.
|
|
