Pathogenic variation of SLC26A 4 gene causes both Pendred syndrome (PDS) and non-syndromic enlarged vestibular aqueduct (NSEVA/DFNB4), two autosomal recessive disorders. The former accounts for approximately 6% of human genetic hearing loss, making it the second most common form of syndromic deafness after Usher syndrome, while the latter is the most common radiological malformation associated with childhood sensorineural hear...

Visible mould is widely used as a practical sorting cue in maize, but it remains unclear whether the visible lesion marks the boundary of mycotoxin contamination within an intact cob. This study examined mycotoxin attenuation, spatial heterogeneity, and co-occurrence in visibly mouldy white maize cobs, using measured distances from the visible mould margin. Cobs with visible mould ( n = 35) were sampled for the study. For each...

The Kulanaokuaiki Tephra Unit 3 (900 C.E.) was a subplinian basaltic scoria eruption, the largest known to have occurred at Kīlauea’s summit. The initiation mechanism and cause(s) of this highly hazardous eruption remain poorly understood, particularly as this style of activity has not been observed in the modern period. We use olivine diffusion timescales from Fe-Mg and lithium zoning to assess magma storage timescales and ev...

The high-value tropical sea cucumber Holothuria ( Metriatyla ) scabra or sandfish is central to the ‘400+ year old global’, bêche-de-mer trade. Consequently, it has faced heavy exploitation and has become extirpated in some regions within its broader Indo-Pacific natural distribution. Recent molecular evidence has provided clarity on its taxonomic identity, indicating it comprises a species complex, with four broad lineages de...

Testosterone (T) and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) are two steroids integral to male primate development. For humans, both are high in early infancy (for T, this is known as minipuberty) then rapidly decline. DHEAS then increases beginning in early childhood, resulting in a process known as adrenarche, which signals the maturation of the zona reticularis of the adrenal gland. T increases a few years thereafter, markin...

Edwardsiella anguillarum is a gram‐negative bacterium, synonymous with previously described atypical, fish‐pathogenic Edwardsiella tarda . Originally described from eels in 2015, E. anguillarum is an important global fish pathogen, particularly in tilapia. This study describes intraspecific phenotypic and genotypic variability among 17 E. anguillarum isolates from non‐anguillid fish hosts and varied geographic origins. Isolate...

Bottom‐tow gear fisheries (trawls and dredges) produce ~24 million mt of harvest annually, representing a globally important animal‐sourced food system. While many are currently sustainably managed, growing concern over the potential for ecosystem impacts from bottom‐tow gears has increased pressure to improve these fisheries. We assembled an international working group of > 30 contributors, including fishing industry particip...

Mite domatia — small structures on plant leaves that house mutualistic mites — are widespread across plants yet remain relatively understudied. Here we investigate the chemistry and micromorphology of mite domatia across sympatric species of broadleaf deciduous woody species that have convergently evolved tuft-form mite domatia. Specifically, we test whether domatia display similar micromorphological and chemical properties us...