Previous studies have established that chlorella viruses encode K؉ channels with different structural and functional properties. In the current study, we exploit the different sensitivities of these channels to Cs ؉ to determine if the membrane depolarization observed during virus infection is caused by the activities of these channels. Infection of Chlorella NC64A with four viruses caused rapid membrane depolarization of similar amplitudes, but with different kinetics. Depolarization was fastest after infection with virus SC-1A (half time [t 1/2 ], about 9 min) and slowest with virus NY-2A (t 1/2 , about 12 min). Cs ؉ inhibited membrane depolarization only in viruses that encode a Cs ؉ -sensitive K ؉ channel. Collectively, the results indicate that membrane depolarization is an early event in chlorella virus-host interactions and that it is correlated with viral-channel activity. This suggestion was supported by investigations of thin sections of Chlorella cells, which show that channel blockers inhibit virus DNA release into the host cell. Together, the data indicate that the channel is probably packaged in the virion, presumably in its internal membrane. We hypothesize that fusion of the virus internal membrane with the host plasma membrane results in an increase in K ؉ conductance and membrane depolarization; this depolarization lowers the energy barrier for DNA release into the host.

The Arctic is warming at more than twice the rate of the global average. This warming is influenced by clouds which modulate the solar and terrestrial radiative fluxes, and thus, determine the surface energy budget. However, the interactions among clouds, aerosols, and radiative fluxes in the Arctic are still poorly understood. To address these uncertainties, the Ny-Ålesund AeroSol Cloud ExperimeNT (NASCENT) study was conducted from September 2019 to August 2020 in Ny-Ålesund Svalbard. The campaign’s primary goal was to elucidate the life cycle of aerosols in the Arctic and to determine how they modulate cloud properties throughout the year. In-situ and remote sensing observations were taken on the ground at sea-level and at a mountaintop station, and with a tethered balloon system. An overview of the meteorological and the main aerosol seasonality encountered during the NASCENT year is introduced, followed by a presentation of first scientific highlights. In particular, we present new findings on aerosol physicochemical properties which also include molecular properties. Further, the role of cloud droplet activation and ice crystal nucleation in the formation and persistence of mixed-phase clouds, and the occurrence of secondary ice processes, are discussed and compared to the representation of cloud processes within the regional Weather Research and Forecasting model. The paper concludes with research questions that are to be addressed in upcoming NASCENT publications.

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We analyzed the effects of domestication on the subdivisions of the cochlear nucleus in the gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) by comparing their volumes and rostrocaudal extents in laboratory gerbils and in age-matched F1 offspring of gerbils caught in the wild. In addition, soma size was systematically analyzed in the anteroventral cochlear nucleus of both groups. Total cochlear nucleus volume and rostrocaudal extent were not significantly different between groups either for young (postnatal day 9) animals before the onset of hearing or for young 4-month-old animals. However, the dorsal cochlear nucleus was significantly larger and the anteroventral cochlear nucleus was significantly smaller in young adults of the wild strain. Thus the relative proportions of the cochlear nucleus subdivisions differed between the groups. In addition, soma size was significantly larger in the low-frequency portion of the anterovental cochlear nucleus in domesticated gerbils compared to wild gerbils. To our knowledge, this is the first reported instance of a well-defined brain structure (e.g., the antreovental cochlear nucleus) being larger in the domesticated than in the wild form.

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Objective was to investigate, if incidence of dreaming is increased, when positive suggestion of dreams is applied by an anesthesiologist preoperatively. Forty patients with standard care (Controls, CON) and 40 patients with dream suggestion (SUGG) before maxillofacial surgery were included in the study (33 female and 47 male patients). One day before surgery, patients with SUGG were requested to imagine a pleasant dream (dreamfilm) for anesthesia. Immediately before anesthesia, these patients were requested to imagine their dreams. After anesthesia, all patients were interviewed about dreaming. Incidence of dreaming was higher in patients with SUGG (23 vs. 12, p = .024). However, patient's satisfaction with anesthesia was not higher in SUGG than in CON, 10 (5 to 10) versus 10 (5 to 10), p = .26; Numerical Rating Scale 0-10, 0 = none, 10 = most.

Abstract. The role of clouds in the surface radiation budget is particularly complex in the rapidly changing Arctic. However, despite their importance, long-term observations of Arctic clouds are relatively sparse. Here, we present observations of cold clouds based on 7 years (2011–2017) of ground-based lidar observations at the Arctic Lidar Observatory for Middle Atmosphere Research (ALOMAR) in Andenes in the Norwegian Arctic. In two case studies, we assess (1) the agreement between a co-located cirrus cloud observations from the ground-based lidar and the spaceborne lidar aboard the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) satellite and (2) the ground-based lidar's capability to determine the cloud phase in mixed-phase clouds from depolarization measurements. We then compute multiyear statistics of cold clouds from both platforms with respect to their occurrence, cloud top and base height, cloud top temperature, and thermodynamic phase for the 2011–2017 period. We find that satellite- and ground-based observations agree well with respect to the coincident cirrus measurement and that the vertical phase distribution within a liquid-topped mixed-phase cloud could be identified from depolarization measurements. On average, 8 % of all satellite profiles were identified as single-layer cold clouds with no apparent seasonal differences. The average cloud top and base heights, combining the ground-based and satellite measurements, are 9.1 and 6.9 km, respectively, resulting in an average thickness of 2.2 km. Seasonal differences between the average top and base heights are on the order of 1–2 km and are largest when comparing fall (highest) and spring (lowest). However, seasonal variations are small compared with the observed day-to-day variability. Cloud top temperatures agree well between both platforms, with warmer cloud top temperatures in summer. The presented study demonstrates the capabilities of long-term cloud observations in the Norwegian Arctic from the ground-based lidar at Andenes.

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