Severe anemia is one of the most lethal complications of Plasmodium falciparum malaria. Red blood cells (RBCs) from children with severe malarial anemia are deficient in complement regulatory proteins (CR1 and CD55). A case-control, age- and sex-matched study was carried out to determine whether these deficiencies are acquired or inherited and the relative contribution of these complement regulatory protein deficiencies, the immune complex level, and the parasite density to the development of severe malarial anemia. RBC CR1 and CD55 deficiencies resolved after treatment, suggesting that these changes were acquired. Using conditional logistic regression, a decline in CD55 (or CR1) (odds ratio [OR], 4.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.1-8.1; P<.001) and an increase in immune complex level (OR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.5-4.8; P=.001) were significantly associated with severe malarial anemia.

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Enhanced grain yield has been achieved in bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) through development and cultivation of superior genotypes incorporating yield-related agronomic and physiological traits derived from genetically diverse and complementary genetic pool. Despite significant breeding progress, yield levels in wheat have remained relatively low and stagnant under marginal growing environments. There is a need for genetic improvement of wheat using yield-promoting morpho-physiological attributes and desired genotypes under the target production environments to meet the demand for food and feed. This review presents breeding progress in wheat for yield gains using agronomic and physiological traits. Further, the paper discusses globally available wheat genetic resources to identify and select promising genotypes possessing useful agronomic and physiological traits to enhance water, nutrient-, and radiation-use efficiency to improve grain yield potential and tolerance to abiotic stresses (i.e. elevated CO2, high temperature, and drought stresses). Finally, the paper highlights quantitative trait loci (QTL) linked to agronomic and physiological traits to aid breeding of high-performing wheat genotypes.

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ABSTRACT. The gap between scientific knowledge and implementation in the fields of biodiversity conservation, environmental management, and climate change adaptation has resulted in many calls from practitioners and academics to provide practical solutions responding effectively to the risks and opportunities of global environmental change, e.g., Future Earth. We present a framework to guide the implementation of science-action partnerships based on a real-world case study of a partnership between a local municipality and an academic institution to bridge the science-action gap in the eThekwini Municipal Area, South Africa. This partnership aims to inform the implementation of sustainable land-use planning, biodiversity conservation, environmental management, and climate change adaptation practice and contributes to the development of human capacity in these areas of expertise. Using a transdisciplinary approach, implementation-driven research is being conducted to develop several decision-making products to better inform land-use planning and management. Lessons learned through this partnership are synthesized and presented as a framework of enabling actions operating at different levels, from the individual to the interorganizational. Enabling actions include putting in place enabling organizational preconditions, assembling a functional well-structured team, and actively building interpersonal and individual collaborative capacity. Lessons learned in the case study emphasize the importance of building collaborative capacity and social capital, and paying attention to the process of transdisciplinary research to achieve more tangible science, management, and policy objectives in science-action partnerships. By documenting and reflecting on the process, this case study provides conceptual and practical guidance on bridging the science-action gap through partnerships.

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