Queensland University of Technology

About: Queensland University of Technology is a education organization based out in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 14188 authors who have published 55022 publications receiving 1496237 citations. The organization is also known as: QUT.

Grassland management impacts on soil carbon stocks: a new synthesis.

Abstract: Grassland ecosystems cover a large portion of Earths’ surface and contain substantial amounts of soil organic carbon. Previous work has established that these soil carbon stocks are sensitive to management and land use changes: grazing, species composition, and mineral nutrient availability can lead to losses or gains of soil carbon. Because of the large annual carbon fluxes into and out of grassland systems, there has been growing interest in how changes in management might shift the net balance of these flows, stemming losses from degrading grasslands or managing systems to increase soil carbon stocks (i.e., carbon sequestration). A synthesis published in 2001 assembled data from hundreds of studies to document soil carbon responses to changes in management. Here we present a new synthesis that has integrated data from the hundreds of studies published after our previous work. These new data largely confirm our earlier conclusions: improved grazing management, fertilization, sowing legumes and improved grass species, irrigation, and conversion from cultivation all tend to lead to increased soil C, at rates ranging from 0.105 to more than 1 Mg C·ha−1·yr−1. The new data include assessment of three new management practices: fire, silvopastoralism, and reclamation, although these studies are limited in number. The main area in which the new data are contrary to our previous synthesis is in conversion from native vegetation to grassland, where we find that across the studies the average rate of soil carbon stock change is low and not significant. The data in this synthesis confirm that improving grassland management practices and conversion from cropland to grassland improve soil carbon stocks.

Bacterial adherence and biofilm formation on medical implants: A review

Abstract: Biofilms are a complex group of microbial cells that adhere to the exopolysaccharide matrix present on the surface of medical devices. Biofilm-associated infections in the medical devices pose a serious problem to the public health and adversely affect the function of the device. Medical implants used in oral and orthopedic surgery are fabricated using alloys such as stainless steel and titanium. The biological behavior, such as osseointegration and its antibacterial activity, essentially depends on both the chemical composition and the morphology of the surface of the device. Surface treatment of medical implants by various physical and chemical techniques are attempted in order to improve their surface properties so as to facilitate bio-integration and prevent bacterial adhesion. The potential source of infection of the surrounding tissue and antimicrobial strategies are from bacteria adherent to or in a biofilm on the implant which should prevent both biofilm formation and tissue colonization. This article provides an overview of bacterial biofilm formation and methods adopted for the inhibition of bacterial adhesion on medical implants.

Effect of vitamin D supplementation on muscle strength: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract: This systematic review demonstrates that vitamin D supplementation does not have a significant effect on muscle strength in vitamin D replete adults. However, a limited number of studies demonstrate an increase in proximal muscle strength in adults with vitamin D deficiency. The purpose of this study is to systematically review the evidence on the effect of vitamin D supplementation on muscle strength in adults. A comprehensive systematic database search was performed. Inclusion criteria included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) involving adult human participants. All forms and doses of vitamin D supplementation with or without calcium supplementation were included compared with placebo or standard care. Outcome measures included evaluation of strength. Outcomes were compared by calculating standardised mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence intervals. Of 52 identified studies, 17 RCTs involving 5,072 participants met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed no significant effect of vitamin D supplementation on grip strength (SMD −0.02, 95%CI −0.15,0.11) or proximal lower limb strength (SMD 0.1, 95%CI −0.01,0.22) in adults with 25(OH)D levels >25 nmol/L. Pooled data from two studies in vitamin D deficient participants (25(OH)D 25 nmol/L. However, a limited number of studies demonstrate an increase in proximal muscle strength in adults with vitamin D deficiency.

Phylogenetic diversity (PD) and biodiversity conservation: some bioinformatics challenges.

Abstract: Biodiversity conservation addresses information challenges through estimations encapsulated in measures of diversity. A quantitative measure of phylogenetic diversity, “PD”, has been defined as the minimum total length of all the phylogenetic branches required to span a given set of taxa on the phylogenetic tree (Faith 1992a). While a recent paper incorrectly characterizes PD as not including information about deeper phylogenetic branches, PD applications over the past decade document the proper incorporation of shared deep branches when assessing the total PD of a set of taxa. Current PD applications to macroinvertebrate taxa in streams of New South Wales, Australia illustrate the practical importance of this definition. Phylogenetic lineages, often corresponding to new, “cryptic”, taxa, are restricted to a small number of stream localities. A recent case of human impact causing loss of taxa in one locality implies a higher PD value for another locality, because it now uniquely represents a deeper branch. This molecular-based phylogenetic pattern supports the use of DNA barcoding programs for biodiversity conservation planning. Here, PD assessments side-step the contentious use of barcoding-based “species” designations. Bio-informatics challenges include combining different phylogenetic evidence, optimization problems for conservation planning, and effective integration of phylogenetic information with environmental and socio-economic data.