The 1987 law of yugoslavia on the coastal sea and the continental shelf

Abstract

This article analyzes the recent Yugoslav legislation on the regime of internal waters, the territorial sea, and the continental shelf which was initiated by the ratification of the Law of the Sea (LOS) Convention on behalf of Yugoslavia on November 27, 1985. The highlights of the 1987 law are the clauses strengthening the national security interests in the internal waters of Yugoslavia, the repair of foreign ships in domestic shipyards, the introduction of the system of prior notification of foreign warships entering the territorial waters, and the extension on the continental shelf of sovereign rights over archeological and historical objects. It is maintained that the law has failed to incorporate the novelties of the LOS Convention such as the proclamation of the Yugoslav exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Adriatic Sea and the reestablishment of its contiguous zone.     

Oceanic fronts in the Sargasso Sea control the early life and drift of Atlantic eels

Anguillid freshwater eels show remarkable life histories. In the Atlantic, the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) and American eel (Anguilla rostrata) undertake extensive migrations to spawn in the oceanic Sargasso Sea, and subsequently the offspring drift to foraging areas in Europe and North America, first as leaf-like leptocephali larvae that later metamorphose into glass eels. Since recruitment of European and American glass eels has declined drastically during past decades, there is a strong demand for further understanding of the early, oceanic phase of their life cycle. Consequently, during a field expedition to the eel spawning sites in the Sargasso Sea, we carried out a wide range of dedicated bio-physical studies across areas of eel larval distribution. Our findings suggest a key role of oceanic frontal processes, retaining eel larvae within a zone of enhanced feeding conditions and steering their drift. The majority of the more westerly distributed American eel larvae are likely to follow a westerly/northerly drift route entrained in the Antilles/Florida Currents. European eel larvae are generally believed to initially follow the same route, but their more easterly distribution close to the eastward flowing Subtropical Counter Current indicates that these larvae could follow a shorter, eastward route towards the Azores and Europe. The findings emphasize the significance of oceanic physical–biological linkages in the life-cycle completion of Atlantic eels.     

Climate change promotes transitions to tall evergreen vegetation in tropical Asia

Vegetation in tropical Asia is highly diverse due to large environmental gradients and heterogeneity of landscapes. This biodiversity is threatened by intense land use and climate change. However, despite the rich biodiversity and the dense human population, tropical Asia is often underrepresented in global biodiversity assessments. Understanding how climate change influences the remaining areas of natural vegetation is therefore highly important for conservation planning. Here, we used the adaptive Dynamic Global Vegetation Model version 2 (aDGVM2) to simulate impacts of climate change and elevated CO₂ on vegetation formations in tropical Asia for an ensemble of climate change scenarios. We used climate forcing from five different climate models for representative concentration pathways RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. We found that vegetation in tropical Asia will remain a carbon sink until 2099, and that vegetation biomass increases of up to 28% by 2099 are associated with transitions from small to tall woody vegetation and from deciduous to evergreen vegetation. Patterns of phenology were less responsive to climate change and elevated CO₂ than biomes and biomass, indicating that the selection of variables and methods used to detect vegetation changes is crucial. Model simulations revealed substantial variation within the ensemble, both in biomass increases and in distributions of different biome types. Our results have important implications for management policy, because they suggest that large ensembles of climate models and scenarios are required to assess a wide range of potential future trajectories of vegetation change and to develop robust management plans. Furthermore, our results highlight open ecosystems with low tree cover as most threatened by climate change, indicating potential conflicts of interest between biodiversity conservation in open ecosystems and active afforestation to enhance carbon sequestration.     

Localization of Cell Division Protein FtsQ by Immunofluorescence Microscopy in Dividing and Nondividing Cells of Escherichia coli

The localization of cell division protein FtsQ in Escherichia coli wild-type cells was studied by immunofluorescence microscopy with specific monoclonal antibodies. FtsQ could be localized to the division site in constricting cells. FtsQ could also localize to the division site in ftsQ1(Ts) cells grown at the permissive temperature. A hybrid protein in which the cytoplasmic domain and the transmembrane domain were derived from the γ form of penicillin-binding protein 1B and the periplasmic domain was derived from FtsQ was also able to localize to the division site. This result indicates that the periplasmic domain of FtsQ determines the localization of FtsQ, as has also been concluded by others for the periplasmic domain of FtsN. Noncentral FtsQ foci were found in the area of the cell where the nucleoid resides and were therefore assumed to represent sites where the FtsQ protein is synthesized and simultaneously inserted into the cytoplasmic membrane.     

The Role of Hydrogen for Sulfurimonas denitrificans’ Metabolism

Sulfurimonas denitrificans was originally isolated from coastal marine sediments. It can grow with thiosulfate and nitrate or sulfide and oxygen. Recently sequencing of its genome revealed that it encodes periplasmic and cytoplasmic [NiFe]-hydrogenases but the role of hydrogen for its metabolism has remained unknown. We show the first experimental evidence that S. denitrificans can indeed express a functional hydrogen uptake active hydrogenase and can grow on hydrogen. In fact, under the provided conditions it grew faster and denser on hydrogen than on thiosulfate alone and even grew with hydrogen in the absence of reduced sulfur compounds. In our experiments, at the time points tested, the hydrogen uptake activity appeared to be related to the periplasmic hydrogenase and not to the cytoplasmic hydrogenase. Our data suggest that under the provided conditions S. denitrificans can grow more efficiently with hydrogen than with thiosulfate.     

Virus-host Interactions during Hepatitis C Virus Entry - Implications for Pathogenesis and Novel Treatment Approaches

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a member of the Flaviviridae family and causes acute and chronic hepatitis. Chronic HCV infection may result in severe liver damage including liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The liver is the primary target organ of HCV, and the hepatocyte is its primary target cell. Attachment of the virus to the cell surface followed by viral entry is the first step in a cascade of interactions between the virus and the target cell that is required for successful entry into the cell and initiation of infection. This step is an important determinant of tissue tropism and pathogenesis; it thus represents a major target for antiviral host cell responses, such as antibody-mediated virus neutralization. Following the development of novel cell culture models for HCV infection our understanding of the HCV entry process and mechanisms of virus neutralization has been markedly advanced. In this review we summarize recent developments in the molecular biology of viral entry and its impact on pathogenesis of HCV infection, development of novel preventive and therapeutic antiviral strategies.     

Balance control in stepping down expected and unexpected level changes

Stepping down an elevation in ongoing gait is a common task that can cause falls when the level change is unexpected. The aim of this study was to compare expected and unexpected stepping down. We hypothesized that unexpected stepping would lead to loss of control over the movement and potentially falls due to buckling of the leading leg at landing. Ten male subjects repeatedly walked over a platform on which they stepped down an expected 10-cm height difference. In 5 out of 50 trials, the height difference was encountered unexpectedly early. Kinematics and ground reaction forces under both feet were measured during the stride in which the height difference was negotiated. Stepping down involved a substantial increase in forward horizontal and angular momenta (approximately 40 N s and 20 N ms). In expected stepping down, step length was significantly increased (17%), which allowed control of these forward horizontal and angular momenta immediately following landing. In unexpected stepping down, the time between expected ground contact and actual ground contact (110 ms) appeared too short to substantially adjust leg movement and increase step length. Although buckling of the leg did not occur, presumably due to its more vertical orientation at landing, momentum could not be sufficiently attenuated at landing, but a fall was prevented by a rapid step of the trailing limb. The lack of control of momentum might cause a fall, when the capacity to make such a rapid step falls short, as in the elderly, or when the height difference is larger.     

Cytokine production by leukocytes of military personnel with depressive symptoms after deployment to a combat-zone: a prospective, longitudinal study

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is frequently diagnosed in military personnel returning from deployment. Literature suggests that MDD is associated with a pro-inflammatory state. To the best of our knowledge, no prospective, longitudinal studies on the association between development of depressive symptomatology and cytokine production by peripheral blood leukocytes have been published. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the presence of depressive symptomatology six months after military deployment is associated with the capacity to produce cytokines, as assessed before and after deployment. 1023 military personnel were included before deployment. Depressive symptoms and LPS- and T-cell mitogen-induced production of 16 cytokines and chemokines in whole blood cultures were measured before (T0), 1 (T1), and 6 (T2) months after return from deployment. Exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM) was used for data reduction into cytokine patterns. Multiple group latent growth modeling was used to investigate differences in the longitudinal course of cytokine production between individuals with (n = 68) and without (n = 665) depressive symptoms at T2. Individuals with depressive symptoms after deployment showed higher T-cell cytokine production before deployment. Moreover, pre-deployment T-cell cytokine production significantly predicted the presence of depressive symptomatology 6 months after return. There was an increase in T-cell cytokine production over time, but this increase was significantly smaller in individuals developing depressive symptoms. T-cell chemokine and LPS-induced innate cytokine production decreased over time and were not associated with depressive symptoms. These results indicate that increased T-cell mitogen-induced cytokine production before deployment may be a vulnerability factor for development of depressive symptomatology in response to deployment to a combat-zone. In addition, deployment to a combat-zone affects the capacity of T-cells and monocytes to produce cytokines and chemokines until at least 6 months after return.