| 1. |
- Bello-Jurado, Estefanía, et al.
(author)
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Tunable CHA/AEI Zeolite Intergrowths with A Priori Biselective Organic Structure-Directing Agents : Controlling Enrichment and Implications for Selective Catalytic Reduction of NOx
- 2022
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In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition. - : Wiley. - 1433-7851 .- 1521-3773. ; 61:28
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A novel ab initio methodology based on high-throughput simulations has permitted designing unique biselective organic structure-directing agents (OSDAs) that allow the efficient synthesis of CHA/AEI zeolite intergrowth materials with controlled phase compositions. Distinctive local crystallographic ordering of the CHA/AEI intergrowths was revealed at the nanoscale level using integrated differential phase contrast scanning transmission electron microscopy (iDPC STEM). These novel CHA/AEI materials have been tested for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx, presenting an outstanding catalytic performance and hydrothermal stability, even surpassing the performance of the well-established commercial CHA-type catalyst. This methodology opens the possibility for synthetizing new zeolite intergrowths with more complex structures and unique catalytic properties.
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| 2. |
- Hodge, Simon, et al.
(author)
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Design and Planning of a Transdisciplinary Investigation into Farmland Pollinators : Rationale, Co-Design, and Lessons Learned
- 2022
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In: Sustainability (Switzerland). - : MDPI AG. - 2071-1050. ; 14:17
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To provide a complete portrayal of the multiple factors negatively impacting insects in agricultural landscapes it is necessary to assess the concurrent incidence, magnitude, and interactions among multiple stressors over substantial biogeographical scales. Trans-national ecological field investigations with wide-ranging stakeholders typically encounter numerous challenges during the design planning stages, not least that the scientific soundness of a spatially replicated study design must account for the substantial geographic and climatic variation among distant sites. ‘PoshBee’ (Pan-European assessment, monitoring, and mitigation of Stressors on the Health of Bees) is a multi-partner transdisciplinary agroecological project established to investigate the suite of stressors typically encountered by pollinating insects in European agricultural landscapes. To do this, PoshBee established a network of 128 study sites across eight European countries and collected over 50 measurements and samples relating to the nutritional, toxicological, pathogenic, and landscape components of the bees’ environment. This paper describes the development process, rationale, and end-result of each aspect of the of the PoshBee field investigation. We describe the main issues and challenges encountered during the design stages and highlight a number of actions or processes that may benefit other multi-partner research consortia planning similar large-scale studies. It was soon identified that in a multi-component study design process, the development of interaction and communication networks involving all collaborators and stakeholders requires considerable time and resources. It was also necessary at each planning stage to be mindful of the needs and objectives of all stakeholders and partners, and further challenges inevitably arose when practical limitations, such as time restrictions and labour constraints, were superimposed upon prototype study designs. To promote clarity for all stakeholders, for each sub-component of the study, there should be a clear record of the rationale and reasoning that outlines how the final design transpired, what compromises were made, and how the requirements of different stakeholders were accomplished. Ultimately, multi-national agroecological field studies such as PoshBee benefit greatly from the involvement of diverse stakeholders and partners, ranging from field ecologists, project managers, policy legislators, mathematical modelers, and farmer organisations. While the execution of the study highlighted the advantages and benefits of large-scale transdisciplinary projects, the long planning period emphasized the need to formally describe a design framework that could facilitate the design process of future multi-partner collaborations.
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| 3. |
- Kardum Hjort, Cecilia, et al.
(author)
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Genomic divergence and a lack of recent introgression between commercial and wild bumblebees (Bombus terrestris)
- 2022
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In: Evolutionary Applications. - : Wiley. - 1752-4571. ; 15:3, s. 365-382
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The global movement of bees for agricultural pollination services can affect local pollinator populations via hybridization. When commercial bumblebees are of the same species but of different geographic origin, intraspecific hybridization may result in beneficial integration of new genetic variation, or alternatively may disrupt locally adapted gene complexes. However, neither the existence nor the extent of genomic introgression and evolutionary divergence between wild and commercial bumblebees is fully understood. We obtained whole-genome sequencing data from wild and commercial Bombus terrestris collected from sites in Southern Sweden with and without long-term use of commercially imported B. terrestris. We search for evidence of introgression, dispersal and genome-wide differentiation in a comparative genomic analysis of wild and commercial bumblebees. Commercial B. terrestris were found in natural environments near sites where commercial bumblebees were used, as well as drifting wild B. terrestris in commercial bumblebee colonies. However, we found no evidence for widespread, recent genomic introgression of commercial B. terrestris into local wild conspecific populations. We found that wild B. terrestris had significantly higher nucleotide diversity (Nei's pi, π), while the number of segregating sites (Watterson's theta, θw) was higher in commercial B. terrestris. A highly divergent region on chromosome 11 was identified in commercial B. terrestris and found to be enriched with structural variants. The genes present in this region are involved in flight muscle contraction and structure and pathogen immune response, providing evidence for differing evolutionary processes operating in wild and commercial B. terrestris. We did not find evidence for recent introgression, suggesting that co-occurring commercial B. terrestris have not disrupted evolutionary processes in wild B. terrestris populations.
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| 4. |
- Kardum Hjort, Cecilia, et al.
(author)
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Selection despite low genetic diversity and high gene flow in a rapid island invasion of the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris
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In: Molecular Ecology. - 0962-1083.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Invasive species are predicted to adjust their morphological, physiological and life-history traits to adapt to their non-native environments. Although a loss of genetic variation during invasion may restrict local adaptation, introduced species often thrive in novel environments. Despite being founded by just a few individuals, Bombus terrestris (Hymenoptera: Apidae) has in less than 30 years successfully spread across the island of Tasmania (Australia), becoming abundant and competitive with native pollinators. We use RADseq to investigate what neutral and adaptive genetic processes associated with environmental and morphological variation allow B. terrestris to thrive as an invasive species in Tasmania. Given the widespread abundance of B. terrestris, we expected little genetic structure across Tasmania and weak signatures of environmental and morphological selection. We found high gene flow with low genetic diversity, although with significant isolation-by-distance and spatial variation in effective migration rates. Restricted migration was evident across the mid-central region of Tasmania, corresponding to higher elevations, pastural land, low wind speeds and low precipitation seasonality. Tajima's D indicated a recent population expansion extending from the south to the north of the island. Selection signatures were found for loci in relation to precipitation, wind speed and wing loading. Candidate loci were annotated to genes with functions related to cuticle water retention and insect flight muscle stability. Understanding how a genetically impoverished invasive bumblebee has rapidly adapted to a novel island environment provides further understanding about the evolutionary processes that determine successful insect invasions, and the potential for invasive hymenopteran pollinators to spread globally.
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| 5. |
- Schwalbe-Koda, Daniel, et al.
(author)
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A priori control of zeolite phase competition and intergrowth with high-throughput simulations
- 2021
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In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 374:6565, s. 308-315
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Zeolites are versatile catalysts and molecular sieves with large topological diversity, but managing phase competition in zeolite synthesis is an empirical, labor-intensive task. In this work, we controlled phase selectivity in templated zeolite synthesis from first principles by combining high-throughput atomistic simulations, literature mining, human-computer interaction, synthesis, and characterization. Proposed binding metrics distilled from more than 586,000 zeolite-molecule simulations reproduced the extracted literature and rationalized framework competition in the design of organic structure-directing agents. Energetic, geometric, and electrostatic descriptors of template molecules were found to regulate synthetic accessibility windows and aluminum distributions in pure-phase zeolites. Furthermore, these parameters allowed us to realize an intergrowth zeolite through a single bi-selective template. The computation-first approach enables control of both zeolite synthesis and structure composition using a priori theoretical descriptors.
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