Correction: Javed et al. Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) and N-Methylol Dimethyl Phosphonopropion Amide (MDPA) System for Flame Retardant Cotton Fabrics. Polymers 2022, 14, 3414

The authors wish to make a correction to this paper [...].

The Spectral Species Concept in Living Color

Biodiversity monitoring is an almost inconceivable challenge at the scale of the entire Earth. The current (and soon to be flown) generation of spaceborne and airborne optical sensors (i.e., imaging spectrometers) can collect detailed information at unprecedented spatial, temporal, and spectral resolutions. These new data streams are preceded by a revolution in modeling and analytics that can utilize the richness of these datasets to measure a wide range of plant traits, community composition, and ecosystem functions. At the heart of this framework for monitoring plant biodiversity is the idea of remotely identifying species by making use of the 'spectral species' concept. In theory, the spectral species concept can be defined as a species characterized by a unique spectral signature and thus remotely detectable within pixel units of a spectral image. In reality, depending on spatial resolution, pixels may contain several species which renders species-specific assignment of spectral information more challenging. The aim of this paper is to review the spectral species concept and relate it to underlying ecological principles, while also discussing the complexities, challenges and opportunities to apply this concept given current and future scientific advances in remote sensing.

Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) and N-Methylol Dimethyl Phosphonopropion Amide (MDPA) System for Flame Retardant Cotton Fabrics

The aim of the present research work was to develop halogen and formaldehyde-free, durable flame retardant fabric along with multifunctional properties and to find the optimal conditions and parameters. In this research, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were grown onto 100% cotton fabric using the sonochemical method. Zinc acetate dihydrate (Zn(CH3COO)2·2H2O) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) were used as precursors. After ZnO NPs growth, N-Methylol dimethylphosphonopropionamide (MDPA) flame retardant was applied in the presence of 1, 2, 3, 4-butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA) as cross-linkers using the conventional pad-dry-cure method. Induced coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) was used to determine the deposited amount of Zn and phosphorous (P) contents. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were employed to determine the surface morphology and characterization of the developed samples. Furthermore, the thermal degradation of the untreated and treated samples was investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Furthermore, the vertical flame retardant test, limiting oxygen index (LOI), ultraviolet protection factor (UPF), and antibacterial activity of samples were examined. The developed samples showed excellent results for flame retardancy (i.e., 39 mm char length, 0 s after flame time, 0 s after glow time), 32.2 LOI, 143.76 UPF, and 100% antibacterial activity.

Think globally, measure locally: The MIREN standardized protocol for monitoring plant species distributions along elevation gradients

Climate change and other global change drivers threaten plant diversity in mountains worldwide. A widely documented response to such environmental modifications is for plant species to change their elevational ranges. Range shifts are often idiosyncratic and difficult to generalize, partly due to variation in sampling methods. There is thus a need for a standardized monitoring strategy that can be applied across mountain regions to assess distribution changes and community turnover of native and non‐native plant species over space and time. Here, we present a conceptually intuitive and standardized protocol developed by the Mountain Invasion Research Network (MIREN) to systematically quantify global patterns of native and non‐native species distributions along elevation gradients and shifts arising from interactive effects of climate change and human disturbance. Usually repeated every five years, surveys consist of 20 sample sites located at equal elevation increments along three replicate roads per sampling region. At each site, three plots extend from the side of a mountain road into surrounding natural vegetation. The protocol has been successfully used in 18 regions worldwide from 2007 to present. Analyses of one point in time already generated some salient results, and revealed region‐specific elevational patterns of native plant species richness, but a globally consistent elevational decline in non‐native species richness. Non‐native plants were also more abundant directly adjacent to road edges, suggesting that disturbed roadsides serve as a vector for invasions into mountains. From the upcoming analyses of time series, even more exciting results can be expected, especially about range shifts. Implementing the protocol in more mountain regions globally would help to generate a more complete picture of how global change alters species distributions. This would inform conservation policy in mountain ecosystems, where some conservation policies remain poorly implemented.

Belowground impacts of alpine woody encroachment are determined by plant traits, local climate, and soil conditions

Global climate and land use change are causing woody plant encroachment in arctic, alpine, and arid/semi-arid ecosystems around the world, yet our understanding of the belowground impacts of this phenomenon is limited. We conducted a globally distributed field study of 13 alpine sites across four continents undergoing woody plant encroachment and sampled soils from both woody encroached and nearby herbaceous plant community types. We found that woody plant encroachment influenced soil microbial richness and community composition across sites based on multiple factors including woody plant traits, site level climate, and abiotic soil conditions. In particular, root symbiont type was a key determinant of belowground effects, as Nitrogen-fixing woody plants had higher soil fungal richness, while Ecto/Ericoid mycorrhizal species had higher soil bacterial richness and symbiont types had distinct soil microbial community composition. Woody plant leaf traits indirectly influenced soil microbes through their impact on soil abiotic conditions, primarily soil pH and C:N ratios. Finally, site-level climate affected the overall magnitude and direction of woody plant influence, as soil fungal and bacterial richness were either higher or lower in woody encroached versus herbaceous soils depending on mean annual temperature and precipitation. All together, these results document global impacts of woody plant encroachment on soil microbial communities, but highlight that multiple biotic and abiotic pathways must be considered to scale up globally from site- and species-level patterns. Considering both the aboveground and belowground effects of woody encroachment will be critical to predict future changes in alpine ecosystem structure and function and subsequent feedbacks to the global climate system.

Robinia pseudoacacia-dominated vegetation types of Southern Europe: Species composition, history, distribution and management

Knowledge of the species composition of invaded vegetation helps to evaluate an ecological impact of aliens and design an optimal management strategy. We link a new vegetation analysis of a large dataset to the invasion history, ecology and management of Robinia pseudoacacia stands across Southern Europe and provide a map illustrating Robinia distribution. Finally, we compare detected relationships with Central Europe. We show that regional differences in Robinia invasion, distribution, habitats and management are driven both by local natural conditions (climate and soil properties, low competitive ability with native trees) and socioeconomic factors (traditional land-use). Based on the classification of 467 phytosociological relevés we distinguished five broad vegetation types reflecting an oceanity-continentality gradient. The stands were heterogeneous and included 824 taxa, with only 5.8% occurring in more than 10% of samples, representing mainly hemerobic generalists of mesophilous, nutrient-rich and semi-shady habitats. The most common were dry ruderal stands invading human-made habitats. Among native communities, disturbed mesic and alluvial forests were often invaded throughout the area, while dry forests and scrub dominated in Balkan countries. Continuous, long-term and large-scale cultivation represent a crucial factor driving Robinia invasions in natural habitats. Its invasion should be mitigated by suitable management taking into account adjacent habitats and changing cultivation practices to select for native species. Robinia invasion has a comparable pattern in Central and Southern Europe, but there is a substantial difference in management and utilization causing heterogeneity of many South-European stands.

Using historical ecology to reassess the conservation status of coniferous forests in Central Europe

Forests cover approximately one-third of Central Europe. Oak (Quercus) and European beech (Fagus sylvatica) are considered the natural dominants at low and middle elevations, respectively. Many coniferous forests (especially of Picea abies) occur primarily at midelevations, but these are thought to have resulted from forestry plantations planted over the past 200 years. Nature conservation and forestry policy seek to promote broadleaved trees over conifers. However, there are discrepancies between conservation guidelines (included in Natura 2000) and historical and palaeoecological data with regard to the distribution of conifers. Our aim was to bring new evidence to the debate on the conservation of conifers versus broadleaved trees at midelevations in Central Europe. We created a vegetation and land-cover model based on pollen data for a highland area of 11,300 km² in the Czech Republic and assessed tree species composition in the forests before the onset of modern forestry based on 18th-century archival sources. Conifers dominated the study region throughout the entire Holocene (approximately 40-60% of the area). Broadleaved trees were present in a much smaller area than envisaged by current ideas of natural vegetation. Rather than casting doubt on the principles of Central European nature conservation in general, our results highlight the necessity of detailed regional investigations and the importance of historical data in challenging established notions on the natural distribution of tree species.

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) beloved and despised: a story of an invasive tree in Central Europe

Robinia pseudoacacia, invaded many countries a long time ago and is now a common part of the Central European landscape. Positive economic but negative environmental impacts of Robinia result in conflicts of interest between nature conservation, forestry, urban landscaping, beekeepers and the public when defining management priorities. Because current legislation will determine the future distribution of Robinia in the landscape, a comprehensive view of this species is necessary. Although this species is well studied, most of the scientific papers deal with the economic aspects. Other information is published in local journals or reports. Therefore we reviewed the ecological and socio-economic impact of Robinia placing particular emphasis on the species' history, vegetation ecology, invasiveness and management. In Central Europe, Robinia is limited climatically by late spring frost combined with a short vegetation period, soil hypoxia, shade and frequent major disturbances. The long historical tradition of using Robinia for afforestation has resulted in its popularity as a widespread forest tree and it being an important part of the economy in some countries. The main reasons are its fast growth, valuable and resistant wood, suitability for amelioration, reclamation of disturbed sites and erosion control, honey-making and recently dendromass production. On the other hand, a side-effect of planting this nitrogen-fixing pioneer tree, very tolerant of the nature of the substrate, is its propagation and spread, which pose a problem for nature conservation. Robinia is considered invasive, threatening especially dry and semi-dry grasslands, some of the most species-rich and endangered types of habitat in the region, causing extinction of many endangered light-demanding plants and invertebrates due to changes in light regime, microclimate and soil conditions. Other often invaded habitats include open dry forests and shrubland, alluvial habitats, agrarian landscapes, urban and industrial environments and disturbed sites, e.g. post-fire sites, forest clearings or degraded forestry plantations. Without forestry, black locust abundance would decrease during succession in forests with highly competitive and shade tolerant trees and in mature forests it occurs only as admixture of climax trees. The limited pool of native woody species, lack of serious natural enemies and a dense cover of grasses and sedges can suppress forest succession and favour the development of Robinia monodominant stands over 70 years old. A stratified approach, which combines both tolerance in some areas and strict eradication at valuable sites, provides the best option for achieving a sustainable coexistence of Robinia with people and nature.

Timing Is Important: Unmanned Aircraft vs. Satellite Imagery in Plant Invasion Monitoring

The rapid spread of invasive plants makes their management increasingly difficult. Remote sensing offers a means of fast and efficient monitoring, but still the optimal methodologies remain to be defined. The seasonal dynamics and spectral characteristics of the target invasive species are important factors, since, at certain time of the vegetation season (e.g., at flowering or senescing), plants are often more distinct (or more visible beneath the canopy). Our aim was to establish fast, repeatable and a cost-efficient, computer-assisted method applicable over larger areas, to reduce the costs of extensive field campaigns. To achieve this goal, we examined how the timing of monitoring affects the detection of noxious plant invaders in Central Europe, using two model herbaceous species with markedly different phenological, structural, and spectral characteristics. They are giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum), a species with very distinct flowering phase, and the less distinct knotweeds (Fallopia japonica, F. sachalinensis, and their hybrid F. × bohemica). The variety of data generated, such as imagery from purposely-designed, unmanned aircraft vehicle (UAV), and VHR satellite, and aerial color orthophotos enabled us to assess the effects of spectral, spatial, and temporal resolution (i.e., the target species' phenological state) for successful recognition. The demands for both spatial and spectral resolution depended largely on the target plant species. In the case that a species was sampled at the most distinct phenological phase, high accuracy was achieved even with lower spectral resolution of our low-cost UAV. This demonstrates that proper timing can to some extent compensate for the lower spectral resolution. The results of our study could serve as a basis for identifying priorities for management, targeted at localities with the greatest risk of invasive species' spread and, once eradicated, to monitor over time any return. The best mapping strategy should reflect morphological and structural features of the target plant and choose appropriate spatial, spectral, and temporal resolution. The UAV enables flexible data acquisition for required time periods at low cost and is, therefore, well-suited for targeted monitoring; while satellite imagery provides the best solution for larger areas. Nonetheless, users must be aware of their limits.

DOES THE DATA RESOLUTION/ORIGIN MATTER? SATELLITE, AIRBORNE AND UAV IMAGERY TO TACKLE PLANT INVASIONS

Invasive plant species represent a serious threat to biodiversity and landscape as well as human health and socio-economy. To successfully fight plant invasions, new methods enabling fast and efficient monitoring, such as remote sensing, are needed. In an ongoing project, optical remote sensing (RS) data of different origin (satellite, aerial and UAV), spectral (panchromatic, multispectral and color), spatial (very high to medium) and temporal resolution, and various technical approaches (object-, pixelbased and combined) are tested to choose the best strategies for monitoring of four invasive plant species (giant hogweed, black locust, tree of heaven and exotic knotweeds). In our study, we address trade-offs between spectral, spatial and temporal resolutions required for balance between the precision of detection and economic feasibility. For the best results, it is necessary to choose best combination of spatial and spectral resolution and phenological stage of the plant in focus. For species forming distinct inflorescences such as giant hogweed iterative semi-automated object-oriented approach was successfully applied even for low spectral resolution data (if pixel size was sufficient) whereas for lower spatial resolution satellite imagery or less distinct species with complicated architecture such as knotweed, combination of pixel and object based approaches was used. High accuracies achieved for very high resolution data indicate the possible application of described methodology for monitoring invasions and their long-term dynamics elsewhere, making management measures comparably precise, fast and efficient. This knowledge serves as a basis for prediction, monitoring and prioritization of management targets.

Protective hybrid coating containing silver, copper and zinc cations effective against human immunodeficiency virus and other enveloped viruses

Background

Healthcare-acquired infections by pathogenic microorganisms including viruses represent significant health concern worldwide. Next to direct transmission from person-to-person also indirect transmission from contaminated surfaces is well documented and important route of infections. Here, we tested antiviral properties of hybrid coating containing silver, copper and zinc cations that was previously shown to be effective against pathogenic bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Hybrid coatings containing silver, copper and zinc cations were prepared through radical polymerization via sol-gel method and applied on glass slides or into the wells of polymethylmethacrylate plates. A 10 μl droplet of several viruses such as human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), influenza, dengue virus, herpes simplex virus, and coxsackievirus was added to coated and uncoated slides or plates, incubated usually from 5 to 240 min and followed by titer determination of recovered virus.

Results

Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed better adhesion of coatings on glass surfaces, which resulted in 99.5–100 % HIV-1 titer reduction (3.1 ± 0.8 log₁₀TCID₅₀, n = 3) already after 20 min of exposure to coatings, than on coated polymethylmethacrylate plates with 75–100 % (1.7 ± 1.1 log₁₀TCID₅₀, n = 3) and 98–100 % (2.3 ± 0.5 log₁₀TCID₅₀, n = 3) HIV-1 titer reduction after 20 and 120 min of exposure, respectively. Slower virucidal kinetics was observed with other enveloped viruses, where 240 min exposure to coated slides lead to 97 % (dengue), 100 % (herpes simplex) and 77 % (influenza) reduction in virus titers. Interestingly, only marginal reduction in viral titer after 240 min of exposure was noticed for non-enveloped coxsackie B3 virus.

Conclusions

Our hybrid coatings showed virucidal activity against HIV and other enveloped viruses thus providing further findings towards development of broad-spectrum antimicrobial coating suitable for surfaces in healthcare settings.

Coppice abandonment and its implications for species diversity in forest vegetation

Coppicing, once a common type of management in European broadleaved forests, was abandoned in many places after WWII. This form of management provided a variety of structural and microclimatic conditions for tree and understorey vegetation. After the abandonment of this intensive management, succession towards mature close forests ensued, and suitable habitats for species ecologically connected to coppicing were reduced. In our study, we chose a region in central Europe where coppicing was the dominant type of forest management until the first half of the 20^th century but was abandoned after WWII. We investigated long-term changes in both woody and herbaceous species composition in the Lower Morava UNESCO Biosphere Reserve using historical sources and vegetation plot resurveys from the 17^th to the 21^st century. The impact of coppice abandonment on vegetation composition and on the conservation value of forests was evaluated. Dominant tree species appeared to be very stable throughout the past four centuries, but changes occurred in their proportions. A shift from species rich oak-hornbeam woodland towards species poorer communities with increasing proportions of lime, ash and maple was observed after the abandonment of coppicing. The observed tendencies partly differed according to site and data source. The conservation value of forests was measured as the occurrence of red-list species, which were considerably reduced after coppice abandonment. To stop the process of biodiversity loss and support the goals of nature conservation, the re-establishment of coppice management is proposed.

Intensive woodland management in the Middle Ages: spatial modelling based on archival data

Firewood played an indispensable role in European socio-economic systems from prehistory until the nineteenth century. Recent research has shown that in European temperate lowlands the most important management form to produce firewood was coppicing. In spite of the growing body of research on traditional woodland management, there remain large gaps in knowledge. Detailed studies of individual sites or smaller areas have provided a wealth of information on the methods of medieval coppicing, and at such sites the long-term effects of coppicing on vegetation structure and composition have also been examined. However, little is known about the distribution and extent of coppicing at the landscape scale, and forming a coherent picture of the spatial extent rather than the management details of coppicing in larger regions remains a challenge. This paper investigates the distribution and extent of coppice management in Moravia (eastern Czech Republic, ca. 22,300 km²) in the Late Middle Ages. We created an extensive database of written sources that contained information on the presence of coppice woods at the parish level. Subsequently we used the MAXENT algorithm to create a model of the distribution of coppicing over the entire area. With the help of wood production and consumption estimates, we also calculated the minimum area of managed woodland for the study period. Results show that coppicing was predominant in the lowlands and often occurred at higher elevations as well, where neither natural conditions nor tree species composition were favourable. The paper also highlights the potential of spatial models based on archival data for historical landscape reconstructions.

Black locust--successful invader of a wide range of soil conditions

Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia, BL), a species native to North America, has successfully invaded many types of habitats over the world. This study provides an overall assessment of BL soil conditions to determine the range of physical-chemical soil properties it can tolerate. 511 BL stands (for the soil types) and 33 permanent plots (for the soil chemistry) were studied in the Czech Republic. Relationships among different environmental variables (physical-chemical soil properties, vegetation characteristics and habitat conditions) were investigated and variables with the highest effect on species composition were detected. The results were compared with data in the literature for other parts of the secondary and native distributions of this species. This assessment showed that BL is able to tolerate extremely diverse soil physical-chemical conditions, from extremely acid to strongly alkaline, and from medium to highly base saturated soils with a gradient of different subsurface stoniness. Soil nitrate, N mineralization and nitrification rates also varied considerably and the concentrations of exchangeable phosphorus and ammonium were consistently low. N mineralization rate, incubated inorganic nitrogen and nitrates were positively correlated with base saturation and cation exchange capacity. The most common soil types were young soils (Cambisols, Leptosols, Arenosols, and coarsely textured Fluvisols). BL seems to be limited by water supply and soil aeration and prefers well aerated and drained soils, and tolerates desiccation but avoids compact soils and areas where the soils are frequently waterlogged. On steep slopes, BL was less vigorous, stunted and less competitive. By contrast, the tallest BL trees were found on sandy soils in a flat landscape. Number and share of nitrophytes in the herb layer were positively related to basic bedrock, soil reaction and N-NO3/N ratio. Soil reaction was determined as the most important environmental characteristic explaining the variability in BL species composition in the Czech Republic.

The Rise and Fall of Traditional Forest Management in Southern Moravia: A History of the Past 700 Years

European broadleaved forests have been influenced by humans for centuries. Historical management practices are related to environmental conditions but the role of socio-economic factors is also important. For the successful restoration of traditional management for conservation purposes, detailed knowledge on management history and on the driving forces of historical forest changes is necessary. In order to reconstruct long-term spatio-temporal dynamics in forest management, we chose the Pálava Protected Landscape Area, Czech Republic and analyzed archival sources spanning the past seven centuries. Forests in the study area comprise two relatively large woods (Děvín and Milovice) with different environmental conditions. Historical forest management in both woods was coppicing. The coppice cycle was lengthened from 7 years (14^th century) to more than 30 years (19^th century) with a fluctuating density of standards. After WWII, coppicing was completely abandoned. This led to pronounced changes in forest age structure accompanied by stand unification indicated by a sharp decrease in the Shannon index of age diversity. To study local attributes responsible for spatial patterns in coppice abandonment, we constructed a regression model with the date of abandonment as a dependent variable and three groups of explanatory variables: i) remoteness of forest parcels, (ii) morphometric environmental factors and iii) site productivity. In Děvín Wood, coppicing was abandoned gradually with the pattern of abandonment related significantly to slope steepness and forest productivity. Poorly accessible upper slopes and low productive forest sites were abandoned earlier. By contrast, in Milovice Wood, where no clear topographic gradient is present, the abandonment of coppicing was not related to any of the variables we studied. Our study brings insights into the history and consequences of past management practices, and can be used in current attempts to re-establish coppice management for conservation purposes and as a source of sustainable energy.

The impact of an invasive plant changes over time

Many exotic plant invaders pose a serious threat to native communities, but little is known about the dynamics of their impacts over time. In this study, we explored the impact of an invasive plant Heracleum mantegazzianum (giant hogweed) at 24 grassland sites invaded for different periods of time (from 11 to 48 years). Native species' richness and productivity were initially reduced by hogweed invasion but tended to recover after ~30 years of hogweed residence at the sites. Hogweed cover declined over the whole period assessed. A complementary common garden experiment suggested that the dynamics observed in the field were due to a negative plant-soil feedback; hogweed survival and biomass, and its competitive ability were lower when growing in soil inocula collected from earlier-invaded grasslands. Our results provide evidence that the initial dominance of an invasive plant species and its negative impact can later be reversed by stabilising processes.

LONGWOOD - integrating woodland history and ecology in a geodatabase through an interdisciplinary approach

Forests in Europe have been shaped considerably by human activities during most of the Holocene. Changes in forest structure, distribution of tree species and forest biodiversity are partly driven by management history, and many current forest types result from former management. The interdisciplinary project "Long-term woodland dynamics in Central Europe: from estimations to a realistic model" (LONGWOOD) aims to reconstruct long-term dynamics of woodland cover, structure and management in the eastern Czech Republic (Moravia, ca. 27,000 km²), compare the historical and present state of forests, and analyze general patterns of changes and stability of woodlands as well as the role of humans in these processes. In the LONGWOOD project, palaeoecological, archaeological, historical and ecological sources of information on woodland cover, species composition, and human activities (management, settlement density) over the past 7500 years are collected and integrated in the form of a geodatabase. Combining data of different origin, scale, degree of spatial precision and detail into a single geodatabase is a challenging task. The level of detail, information content, and spatio-temporal distribution of data varies between layers as well as individual records according to the nature of the data source and the data itself. The limited and incomplete sources of information until ca. 1100 AD provide a coarser view on forest history while the historical period (especially the past ca. 250 years) is covered by large amounts of precisely located ecological and historical data enabling detailed spatial and temporal analyses. Data on forest structure, history and management will be related to environmental factors (soil type, climate, elevation and other topographic variables derived from DEM) and social historical data (settlement distribution, population density, landuse). A spatio-temporal forest landscape model will be built to assess the forest changes and the main drivers of change.

Tree-rings mirror management legacy: dramatic response of standard oaks to past coppicing in Central Europe

BACKGROUND

Coppicing was one of the most important forest management systems in Europe documented in prehistory as well as in the Middle Ages. However, coppicing was gradually abandoned by the mid-20(th) century, which has altered the ecosystem structure, diversity and function of coppice woods.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

Our aim was to disentangle factors shaping the historical growth dynamics of oak standards (i.e. mature trees growing through several coppice cycles) in a former coppice-with-standards in Central Europe. Specifically, we tried to detect historical coppicing events from tree-rings of oak standards, to link coppicing events with the recruitment of mature oaks, and to determine the effects of neighbouring trees on the stem increment of oak standards. Large peaks in radial growth found for the periods 1895-1899 and 1935-1939 matched with historical records of coppice harvests. After coppicing, the number of newly recruited oak standards markedly grew in comparison with the preceding or following periods. The last significant recruitment of oak standards was after the 1930s following the last regular coppicing event. The diameter increment of oak standards from 1953 to 2003 was negatively correlated with competition indices, suggesting that neighbouring trees (mainly resprouting coppiced Tilia platyphyllos) partly suppressed the growth of oak standards. Our results showed that improved light conditions following historical coppicing events caused significant increase in pulses of radial growth and most probably maintained oak recruitment.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

Our historical perspective carries important implications for oak management in Central Europe and elsewhere. Relatively intense cutting creating open canopy woodlands, either as in the coppicing system or in the form of selective cutting, is needed to achieve significant radial growth in mature oaks. It is also critical for the successful regeneration and long-term maintenance of oak populations.

The impacts of road and walking trails upon adjacent vegetation: effects of road building materials on species composition in a nutrient poor environment

Roads represent an important landscape element affecting both biotic and abiotic components. Alteration of soil properties along roads (addition of nutrients) is assumed to have a great impact on vegetation structure especially in nutrient poor ecosystems. Existing studies focus mainly on road dust. In our study we assessed the overall effects of roads upon adjacent alpine tundra vegetation and soils in Krkonoše Mts, Czech Republic. Our aims were to (1) reconstruct the road-related changes using aerial data and GPS mapping to study colonization of roadside plant species; (2) assess the road effects on physical-chemical soil properties and vegetation composition along transects; and (3) propose conservation measures to stop further damage. Changes were reconstructed from historical multispectral aerial photography (1986 to 1997), measured by GPS device (1997, 2004), and accompanied by detailed soil (1998, 2000 and 2001) and vegetation (2000 and 2004) surveys along transects. Along alkaline roads, fast and profound shifts in physical-chemical soil properties (pH increased from 3.9 up to 7.6, base saturation from 9-30% up to 100%), and species composition were recorded. The roadside vegetation doubled in area during the studied decade. Stress-tolerant tundra species were replaced by meso- to nitrophilous species and species preferring man-made habitats. The intensity of changes depended significantly on the type of road material and the position relative to the road (slope position, distance from the road). Our findings support the assumption that alkaline gravel is the main cause of changes along roads in the area, and indicate the leading role of water transport in the soil and consequent vegetation alteration. To prevent the further damage we recommended replacement of alkaline gravel by granite, even though expensive and technically complicated. Based on our recommendations, the National Park authorities started to reconstruct the trails, although recovery is expected to be slow.

Use of recombinant congenic strains in mapping disease-modifying genes

Previous research studies have established much information about single-gene diseases. However, other genes also influencing the outcome of a disease and genes involved in complex disease remain largely unknown. Here we report on recombinant congenic strains of mice, a powerful tool for genetic dissection of a complex trait.

[The electrocardiogram in patients with implanted cardiac pacemakers]

In the submitted review the authors present electrocardiographic record of patients with atrial, ventricular and dual-chamber pacemakers. They also describe specially ECG findings in complications of cardiostimulation. Recommended procedures in these situation: changing pacemaker programme or electric cardioversion or surgical solution--reimplantation of pacemaker generator and/or lead or implantation of second lead.

[Effect of physical training on the magnitude of left ventricular ischaemic dysfunction in patients with chronic ischaemic heart disease]

Twenty-two patients with chronic ischaemic heart disease (IHD) and reversible myocardial ischaemia after a load as recorded by single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) participated in an eight-week rehabilitation programme. Before exercise their efficiency was tested by spiroergometric examinatin and the patients were randomized into two groups. Group A (10 patients) took exercise at the level of the anaerobic threshold (high intensity training), group B (12 patients) trained at the level of the 60 % anaerobic threshold (low intensity training). The exercise unit including the warming up and relaxation stage lasted 50 minutes and was repeated three times per week. Before and after the rehabilitation programme in all patients spiroergometry was performed as well as exercise pulsed tissue Doppler echocardiography to evaluate regional systolic and diastolic left ventricular function in the ischaemic area, localized beforehand by the SPECT. The following parameters were evaluated by echocardiograpphy: the peak velocity of motion in the ischaemic area in systole (Si), the peak velocity of motion in the ischaemic area in early diastole (Ei) ad in atrial contraction (Ai), and the ratio Ei/Ai was calculated. With the exception of the decline of the value at rest Ai from 8.4 +/- 1.3 cm/sec to 7.3 +/- 1.3 cm/s (p < 005) in the exercising group A none of the parameters of left ventricular regional function changed significantly after an eight-week rehabilitation programme. The maximal performance achieved in spiroergometry increased however after rehabilitation in group A (from 145 +/- 36 W to 162 +/- 39 W, p < 0.01) as well as in group B (from 112 +/- 36W to 122 +/- 36W, p < 0.05). I It may be concluded that a rehabilitation programme of high and low intensity improved the load tolerance during spiroergometry but did not lead to significant improvement of regional systolic and diastolc left ventricular function in the area of reversible ischaemia.