Non-invasive evaluation of systolic and diastolic functions of the left ventricle in newborn infants

To assess possible changes in myocardial contractile function and relaxation occurring after mild perinatal asphyxia, maximal blood pressure and M-mode echocardiograms should be registered simultaneously in 32 normal term newborns (group 1) and in 22 term asphyxiated newborns (group II). The slope of end-systolic pressure-dimension relation (ESPDR) was used as a reliable index for evaluation of the myocardial contractility. The slope of ESPDR and some indices of ventricular relaxation decreased in newborns from group II. It is suggested that ESPDR and parameters of left ventricular relaxation and filling can serve as early and sensitive indices of hypoxic myocardial damage.     

The functional status of the left ventricle in normal conditions. Results of multiphase x-ray contrast left ventriculography]

The main functional characteristics of the left ventricle (LV) were defined using a method of multiphase radiopaque left ventriculography. Three groups of indices of LV function (energetic LV indices, indices of chamber diastolic function, and indices of local motion of the LV walls in the course of a complete cardiocycle) were standardized in healthy persons. An original algorithm of analysis of local LV myocardial contractility was used. A combined approach to interpretation of results of this method was worked out. A standard set of indices, reflecting LV function, was defined. Standardized values of these indices, necessary for an effective use of this method, were obtained.     

New synthetic indicators to assess community resilience and restoration success

The Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011–2020 sets as an objective the restoration of 15% of degraded ecosystems by 2020. This challenge raises at least two major questions: (i) How to restore and (ii) how to measure restoration success of said ecosystems? Measurement of restoration success is necessary to assess objective achievement and to adjust management with regard to objectives. Numerous studies are being conducted to try to work out synthetic indices to assess ecosystem diversity or integrity in the context of global change. Nevertheless, at the community level, there is no index that allows the assessment of community integrity regarding its restoration or resilience, despite the fact that a lot of indicators are used such as species richness, Shannon diversity, multivariate analyses or similarity indices. We have therefore developed two new indices giving new insights on community states: the first index, coined as the Community Structure Integrity Index, measures the proportion of the species abundance in the reference community represented in the restored or degraded community, and the second index, coined as the Higher Abundance Index, measures the proportion of the species abundance in the restored or degraded community which is higher than in the reference community. We illustrate and discuss the use of these new indices with three examples: (i) fictitious communities, (ii) a recent restoration (2 years) of a Mediterranean temporary wetland (Camargue in France) in order to assess restoration efficiency, and (iii) a recently disturbed pseudo-steppe plant community (La Crau area in France) in order to assess natural resilience of the plant community. The indices provide summarized information on the success of restoration or on the resilience of the plant community, which both appear less positive than with standard indicators already used. The indices also provide additional insights useful for management purposes: the Community Structure Integrity Index can indicate whether the improving target species abundance is needed or not while the Higher Abundance Index can indicate whether controlling the high abundance of some species is needed in order to approach a reference ecosystem. These relatively simple indices developed on community composition and structure state can provide a base to further indices focusing on ecosystem functioning or services not only calculating values as a static point but also its temporal or spatial dynamic.     

Response of diatom indices to simulated water quality improvements in a river

Various diatom indices are routinely used in European countries to monitor water quality in waterways. In order to assess their sensitivities and their integration interval after a sudden and lasting environmental change, epilithic diatom biofilms were transferred from several polluted rivers to an unpolluted stream. To monitor the changes of the index values, the biofilms were sampled in a first experiment 20 and 40 days after transfer, and in a second experiment 30 and 60 days after transfer. Sensitivities of the indices to the water quality improvement were assessed calculating the differences between the index values of the reference and the transferred assemblages. Some indices have intermediate sensitivities (BDI, GDI, ILM, SLA), others higher sensitivities (CEE, EPI, ROT, SPI, TDI). The integration interval of these indices was 40–60 days. Some differences were observed between the indices, but their results were homogeneous when compared to those obtained with other metrics such as Bray-Curtis or Chord distances, used to assess the difference between the transferred and the reference diatom assemblages. These other metrics showed that even after 60 days, the transferred assemblages still differed from the reference. This underlines that metrics do not have the same integration intervals and do not assess the same stresses; the choice of the metric used to assess water quality is of prime importance.     

Alpha声学指数效应的meta分析

通过声学指数量化声音的特征反映生物的组成和生境信息,是一种高效率、低干扰的监测方式。该研究领域在近十多年来得到了快速的发展,不断有新的声学指数被提出,同时也有大量的实证研究。声学指数可分为反映录音内信息的alpha声学指数和比较不同录音之间差异的beta声学指数,其中alpha声学指数的实证研究较多。本文在汇总已有研究数据的基础上进行meta分析,关注alpha声学指数与动物多样性、生境质量、动物活跃性之间关联的方向和程度。基于文献调研,本文对8个常用的声学指数进行了总结分析:声学复杂度指数(acoustic complexity index,ACI)、声学熵指数(acoustic entropy index,H)、生物声学指数(bioacoustic index,BI)、标准化声景差异指数(normalized difference soundscape index,NDSI)、声学多样性指数(acoustic diversity index,ADI)、声学均匀度指数(acoustic evenness index,AEI)、声学丰富度指数(acoustic richness ind...     

Taxonomic distinctness along nutrient gradients: More diverse,less diverse or not different from random?

Taxonomic distinctness indices are a family of anthropogenic stress indicators that have been used widely in marine ecosystems; however, their utility in freshwater ecosystems is still unclear. We used two taxonomic distinctness indices and species richness to assess relationships between nutrient gradients and three freshwater taxonomic groups, including diatoms, macrophytes and invertebrates. We found that the indices based on the three organismal groups showed generally rather clear relationships with the nutrient levels, indicating that these indices may bring useful additional information for the purposes of bioassessment. However, the two indices describing taxonomic distinctness showed opposite patterns in relation to nutrient levels. The indices for the three groups of organisms were generally poorly correlated with each other, showing that different organismal groups react differently to anthropogenic stress. Accordingly, taxonomic distinctness indices likely tell us about various aspects of nutrient enrichment of freshwater ecosystems. Our findings also emphasized that the value of these indices may be largely dependent on the organismal group used.     

Performance of different biotic indices assessing the ecological status of rivers in the Central Himalaya

Biotic indices based on benthic macroinvertebrates are increasingly being used to assess the ecological quality of running water worldwide. In Nepal in the central Himalaya, five biotic indices have been developed in succession over the last decade to assess the ecological status of rivers, namely: the NEPbios, BRSbios, GRSbios, HKHbios, and NEPbios-Extended. The implementation of control and protection policies should be based on indices with proven reliability. Such reliability refers to the ability of the index to detect the correct status about the health of the assessed environment. So in the present study, we compare the performance of these five indices to determine the most robust, reliable biotic index for Nepal. In total, 248 biological samples belonging to first- to sixth-order streams were analyzed. Each sampling site was preclassified in situ using a screening protocol and later validated with physicochemical parameters to reflect the actual field condition. Overall, the GRSbios proved to be the most reliable, followed by the NEPbios-Extended, HKHbios, NEPbios, and BRSbios. The results were further validated by the ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristic) curve method. The study recommends applying the GRSbios to ecologically assess rivers in Nepal. In addition, we discuss modifying the GRSbios method to consider the future impacts of global change.     

声学指数在城市森林鸟类多样性评估中的应用

鸣声是鸟类之间进行沟通和传递信息的重要方式,这为通过声学监测评估鸟类多样性提供了独特的机会。利用声学指数快速评估生物多样性是一种新兴的调查方法,但城市森林中的复杂声环境可能会导致声学指数的指示结果出现偏差。为了解声学指数在城市森林中应用的可行性,本研究在北京市东郊森林公园设置了50个矩阵式调查样点,于2021年4–6月每月进行1次鸟类传统观测和同步鸣声采集,通过比较两种方法的结果来探究声学监测的有效性。采用Spearman相关分析和广义线性混合模型评估6个常用声学指数与鸟类丰富度和多度的关系,并衡量了每个指数的性能。结果表明:(1)本研究共记录到鸟类10目23科35种,通过声学监听识别的总物种数与传统鸟类观测相等,但具体鸟种存在差异;(2)不同月份间声学指数与鸟类丰富度和多度的相关性有明显差别,声学复杂度指数(ACI)和标准化声景差异指数(NDSI)优于其他指数,是评估鸟类多样性的关键变量;(3)声学指数对鸟类多度的预测能力(R²m=0.32,R2c=0.80)要高于丰富度(R²m=0.12,R2c=0.18)。声学指数为快速评估生物多样性提...     

Performance of two southern california benthic community condition indices using species abundance and presence-only data: relevance to DNA barcoding

DNA barcoding, as it is currently employed, enhances use of marine benthic macrofauna as environmental condition indicators by improving the speed and accuracy of the underlying taxonomic identifications. The next generation of barcoding applications, processing bulk environmental samples, will likely only provide presence information. However, macrofauna indices presently used to interpret these data are based on species abundances. To assess the importance of this difference, we evaluated the performance of the Southern California Benthic Response Index (BRI) and the AZTI Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) when species abundance data were removed from their calculation. Presence only versions of these two indices were created by eliminating abundance weighting while preserving species identity. Associations between the presence and abundance BRI, and the presence and abundance AMBI were highly significant, with correlation coefficients of 0.99 and 0.81, respectively. The presence versions validated almost equally to the abundance-based indices when applied to the spatial and the temporal monitoring data used to validate the original indices. Simulations in which taxa were systematically removed from calculation of the indices were also conducted to assess how large the barcode library must be for the indices to be effective. Correlation between the BRI-P and BRI remained above 0.9 with only 370 species in the library and reducing the number of species to 450 had almost no effect on correlation between the presence and abundance versions of the AMBI.     

Properties of similarity indices under niche-based and dispersal-based processes in communities

Little is known about the combined impact of habitat filtering and dispersal limitation on species turnover patterns. To gain new insights, we constructed a spatially explicit community model wherein we controlled dispersal distances, the strength of habitat filtering, and the grain of habitat heterogeneity to study the distance decay of several (dis)similarity indices. The impact of habitat filtering is dependent on the ratio between the grain of habitats and the mean dispersal distance. The behavior of (dis)similarity indices varies. First, incidence-based measures of species overlap are less affected by habitat filtering than are abundance-based indices. Second, species identity-based indices, derived from population genetics' F(ST), show interesting capacities to infer dispersal processes under neutrality but are also highly sensitive to habitat filtering. All indices except F(ST)-related indices under neutrality are very sensitive to overall species richness. Hence, community patterns showing contrasted diversity levels should be compared with caution. Partitioning similarity indices within and between habitats appears to be an efficient approach to assess the strength of habitat filtering, and we show that a torus-translation test is powerful for this purpose. We finally highlight the need for further analytical studies to achieve theoretical expectations of similarity decay under dispersal and niche processes.     

Comparison of UTCI to selected thermal indices

Over the past century more than 100 indices have been developed and used to assess bioclimatic conditions for human beings. The majority of these indices are used sporadically or for specific purposes. Some are based on generalized results of measurements (wind chill, cooling power, wet bulb temperature) and some on the empirically observed reactions of the human body to thermal stress (physiological strain, effective temperature). Those indices that are based on human heat balance considerations are referred to as "rational indices". Several simple human heat balance models are known and are used in research and practice. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the newly developed Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI), and some of the more prevalent thermal indices. The analysis is based on three groups of data: global data-set, synoptic datasets from Europe, and local scale data from special measurement campaigns of COST Action 730. We found the present indices to express bioclimatic conditions reasonably only under specific meteorological situations, while the UTCI represents specific climates, weather, and locations much better. Furthermore, similar to the human body, the UTCI is very sensitive to changes in ambient stimuli: temperature, solar radiation, wind and humidity. UTCI depicts temporal variability of thermal conditions better than other indices. The UTCI scale is able to express even slight differences in the intensity of meteorological stimuli.     

Response of ecological indices to nutrient and chemical contaminant stress factors in Eastern Mediterranean coastal waters

Environmental data produced throughout monitoring activities in the framework of the implementation of Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC (WFD) in Eastern Mediterranean (Greece) were used to assess the sensitivity and response of ecological indices against trace metals, eutrophication and multiple stress factors. The applied ecological indices include multi-metric eutrophication indices, a physicochemical status index applied for the first time in the Greek marine area, benthic indices, phytoplankton biomass index, and integrated status indices assessed through the application of the decision tree integration scheme. To investigate the exceedances in the eco-stoichiometric relationship between nutrients, considered a stressing factor, all physicochemical elements influenced directly or indirectly by eutrophication, such as nutrient concentrations, water transparency, oxygen saturation, particulates concentration, and sediment organic content, were related to ecological indices. Also, chemical contaminant stress factors represented by heavy metal concentrations in the water, as well as multiple stress factors represented by a pressure index, were related to ecological indices. A graphical visualization multivariate tool and statistical correlations were used to evaluate the sensitivity or explanatory power of the tested ecological indices against single and multiple stress factors. Results showed a strong response of all ecological indices to stress factors, although a diversification of sensitivity was evident. Primary production-related indices, i.e., macroalgae and chlorophyll-a indices, are more sensitive to particulates and nitrogen, while secondary production-related indices, i.e., benthic macroinvertebrates indices and eutrophication indices, including nutrients, are more sensitive to phosphates in the water column. The macroalgae index shows the strongest sensitivity to multiple stress factors. Among metals, mostly cadmium seems to match all indices⿿ performance. Nutrient relationships were shown as critical to eutrophication and ecological status.     

Comparison of two indices based on macrophyte assemblages to assess the ecological status of coastal waters in the transition between the Atlantic and Mediterranean eco-regions

Several indices based on the composition and abundance of aquatic flora have been developed to assess the ecological status of coastal waters along the European coasts in the context of the Water Framework Directive. This directive pointed out the intercalibration of indices based on the same biological element within an eco-region to ensure the consistency and comparability among them. For a better management of coastal areas in the transition zone between two eco-regions, the comparison of indices developed for each eco-region may also be necessary. The aim of this work was to compare two indices based on macrophytes that have been proposed for two different and adjoining eco-regions: the RSL (Reduced Species List) in the Atlantic eco-region and the CARLIT (Cartography of littoral and upper sublittoral communities) in the Mediterranean. These indices were applied in 14 sites in the transition between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, where a wide range of anthropogenic pressures can be found, from high (Algeciras Bay) to almost negligible ("El Estrecho" Natural Park). Overall, both indices were sensitive to anthropogenic pressures and suitable to assess the ecological status. The comparison between indices suggested a bias in the assessment of the ecological status between good and high classes due to a different definition of high ecological status class between RSL and CARLIT. In addition, the most important disagreements between indices were found in the most degraded localities. The results showed, however, a high comparability between RSL and CARLIT despite their marked conceptual and methodological differences.     

The h index and career assessment by numbers

Growing demand to quantify the research output from public funding has tempted funding agencies, promotion committees and employers to treat numerical indices of research output more seriously. So many assessment exercises are now conducted worldwide that traditional peer assessment is threatened. Here, we describe a new citation-based index (Hirsh's h index) and examine several factors that might influence it for ecologists and evolutionary biologists, such as gender, country of residence, subdiscipline and total publication output. We suggest that h is not obviously superior to other indices that rely on citations and publication counts to assess research performance.     

Global diversity and adaptations of avian eggshell thickness indices

The amniote eggshell is a fundamental aspect of the embryo life-support system, protecting it from UV light, microbes and mechanical damage, while regulating gas exchange and providing calcium for growth. The thickness of eggshells is highly diverse across modern birds and influences multiple eggshell functions, yet the selective pressures driving eggshell thickness have not been clearly identified. Here, we use a global dataset of avian eggshell thickness indices for 4260 (> 41%) avian species to assess trends in eggshell thickness across the phylogeny, as these indices are strongly correlated with direct measures of eggshell thickness and are non-destructive to the sample. We analysed the dataset within a phylogenetic framework to assess the relative importance of climatic and ecological explanations for variation in eggshell thickness indices. The distribution of avian eggshell thickness indices across species was found to be primarily driven by phylogenetic relatedness, in addition to evolutionary processes that do not match a Brownian model of evolution. Across modern birds, thicker eggshells were more prevalent in species (1) with precocial young, (2) which exhibit a scavenger-based diet, (3) which primarily feed on vertebrates or plants (excluding nectivores, seed and fruit specialists) and (4) which breed in open habitats. Thicker eggshells found in species with precocial young probably enable higher rates of calcium removal for the more advanced embryo development. Excessive light transmission through the shell damages developing embryos, while too little light transmission can impede development. Eggs in shaded habitats experience low light exposure, and thus thinner shells are more prevalent in these environments potentially to increase light transmission through the shell. Overall, variation in eggshell thickness indices appears to be driven largely by phylogeny, with certain life-history traits linked to embryo growth rate, calcium content of their food, and the need to mitigate excessive light transmission through the shell.     

Indices for performance evaluation of predictive models in food microbiology

Two complementary measures are proposed as simple indices of the performance of models in predictive food microbiology. The indices assess the level of confidence one can have in the predictions of the model and whether the model displays any bias which could lead to 'fail-dangerous'predictions. The use of the indices is demonstrated using data collated from independent and published literature. This analysis supports previous reports that evaluation of predictive models by comparison to published microbial growth rate data may be inappropriate because of limitations in that data. The indices may fail to reveal some forms of systematic deviation between observed and predicted behaviour. It is concluded, however, that the indices provide an objective and readily interpreted summary of model performance and may serve as a first step towards the development of an objective and useful definition of the term 'validated model'in predictive food microbiology.     

Visible and near-infrared hyperspectral indices explain more variation in lower-crown leaf nitrogen concentrations in autumn than in summer

Oecologia - Autumn canopy phenological transitions are increasing in length as a consequence of climate change. Here, we assess how well hyperspectral indices in the visible and near-infrared (NIR)...     

Identification of Hemoglobin Levels Based on Anthropometric Indices in Elderly Koreans

ObjectivesAnemia is independently and strongly associated with an increased risk of mortality in older people and is also strongly associated with obesity. The objectives of the present study were to examine the associations between the hemoglobin level and various anthropometric indices, to predict low and normal hemoglobin levels using combined anthropometric indices, and to assess differences in the hemoglobin level and anthropometric indices between Korean men and women.MethodsA total of 7,156 individuals ranging in age from 53–90 years participated in this retrospective cross-sectional study. Binary logistic regression (LR) and naïve Bayes (NB) models were used to identify significant differences in the anthropometric indices between subjects with low and normal hemoglobin levels and to assess the predictive power of these indices for the hemoglobin level.ResultsAmong all of the variables, age displayed the strongest association with the hemoglobin level in both men (p < 0.0001, odds ratio [OR] = 0.487, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve based on the LR [LR-AUC] = 0.702, NB-AUC = 0.701) and women (p < 0.0001, OR = 0.636, LR-AUC = 0.625, NB-AUC = 0.624). Among the anthropometric indices, weight and body mass index (BMI) were the best predictors of the hemoglobin level. The predictive powers of all of the variables were higher in men than in women. The AUC values for the NB-Wrapper and LR-Wrapper predictive models generated using combined anthropometric indices were 0.734 and 0.723, respectively, for men and 0.649 and 0.652, respectively, for women. The use of combined anthropometric indices may improve the predictive power for the hemoglobin level.DiscussionAmong the various anthropometric indices, with the exception of age, we did not identify any indices that were better predictors than weight and BMI for low and normal hemoglobin levels. In addition, none of the ratios between pairs of indices were good indicators of the hemoglobin level. Finally, the Korean men tended to have higher associations between the anthropometric indices and anemia than the women.     

Tumor cell proliferative activity in aggressive human lymphomas: the influence of reactive cell admixture on the assessment of proliferative indices

Uncontrolled proliferation is one of the main features of tumor cells, and therefore proliferative indices provide prognostic information, which might be valuable for treatment selection. However, in aggressive human lymphoid tumors, an admixture of normal (reactive) cells may be available in all organs infiltrated by neoplastic cells. We have presented data on determining proliferative activity using Ki-67 immunostaining, and demonstrated that an admixture of reactive cells could exert significant influence on the assessments of proliferative indices. We developed an experimental approach, which makes it possible to select neoplastic cells from the overall lymphoid population and to assess their proliferative activity - tumor cell proliferative indices. Tumor cell proferative indices determined in large cell lymphomas might be significantly higher than proliferative indices of overall populations, and the use of tumor cell proliferative indices will result in a more accurate assessment of disease prognosis.