Portland State University

Timing of flowering is shifting with climate change. Although climate-driven shifts in phenology sometimes affect seed production, whether changing phenology will scale up to affect population dynamics of long-lived plants remains largely unknown, particularly under changing precipitation. Understanding how phenology affects persistence and extinction risk is a pressing need given contemporary biodiversity loss. We combined nearly a decade of demographic censuses and a four-year phenological survey in a rainfall manipulation experiment to examine the effects of experimental drought and irrigation on flowering phenology, vital rates (e.g., survival and individual growth), and population growth in the perennial herb Lomatium utriculatum. We found that drought advanced flowering by 3.3 days on average, and that earlier-flowering plants produced more seeds regardless of treatment. However, both rainfall treatments reduced seed production compared to controls. We quantified the phenology-mediated and direct, non-phenological effects of rainfall manipulation on population growth rates using integral projection models and a life table response experiment. Drought and irrigation increased λ through increased individual growth, but these effects were partially negated by treatment-driven declines in seed output. In contrast, changes to seed production resulting from shifting flowering times had negligible effects on population growth. Our results suggest that climate-driven phenological shifts may only marginally impact population dynamics in perennial plants and highlight that assessing phenology's consequences for persistence under climate change must also account for direct demographic effects of the climate driver(s) themselves.

What could a tabletop role-playing game like Dungeons & Dragons possibly have in common with IT in higher education? As it turns out, quite a lot! Both rely on strategic thinking, collaboration, adaptability, and a willingness to navigate the unknown. In both worlds, plans are made, risks are taken, and outcomes are shaped as much by teamwork as by chance. The roll of a die in D&D can determine whether a player achieves a “natural 20” success or faces a “critical failure” and in IT the same spectrum of outcomes plays out daily through system roll-outs, infrastructure challenges, and unexpected victories. What matters most isn’t the roll itself, but how teams respond, adapt, and carry the story forward.

ABSTRACT This research introduces the concept of relational resilience, which reflects the dynamic capacity of a buyer–supplier relationship to absorb external shocks and continue its core function of exchange. Guided by structural inertia theory (SIT), the research explores how relationship age, exchange volume, and multiplexity contribute to relational resilience across both stable periods and times of extreme disruption. Using a large‐scale panel dataset of buyer–supplier relationships and the COVID‐19 pandemic as an exogenous shock, the findings reveal that relational resilience is enhanced by all three mechanisms, but extreme disruptions lessen the protective value of relationship age and exchange volume while strengthening multiplexity's impact on relational resilience. These findings contribute to supply chain resilience theory by introducing a relational perspective of resilience and integrating SIT to identify structural qualities that promote or constrain adaptation. This study also extends SIT by emphasizing the velocity of environmental change as an important contextual factor that rebalances the competing influences of efficiency and structural inertia in supply chain relationships. These extensions offer valuable insights for managing relational dynamics and resilience in buyer–supplier relationships.

The wildfire regime in South-Central Chile (SCC, 30º to 44ºS) has changed in recent decades due to changes in land use, climate conditions, and characteristics of weather extreme events. While during 1976-2016, the mean annual burned area was ~54,000 ha, during the last decade a sequence of seasons multiplied that value, in particular 2016-2017 with 570,000 ha and 2022-2023 with 450,000 ha. To the north of this region, the fire regime is fuel-limited (e.g. amount and connectivity of biomass), while to the south, it is primarily climate-limited (i.e. plenty of wet fuels). In contrast to all other Mediterranean regions worldwide, SCC has a very low rate of natural ignitions (520 ha, N~800) within 7 SCC sub-regions, previously delimited according to climate, topography, and land use. Using historical wildfire records (including start date, duration, and burned area) from the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF) spanning 1984-2025, we describe the mean local 15-days evolution of weather conditions centered on the start dates of wildfires. For this, we use daily ERA5 data, including maximum temperature, minimum specific humidity, mean sea-level pressure, and maximum surface wind intensity. Furthermore, within each subregion, a cluster analysis reveals distinct mean weather sequences and typical thresholds for these variables related to wildfires. While subtle weather variability is detected in the northern part of SCC, for the southern part of SCC our analysis reveals the relevance of mid-latitud synoptic variability–in particular blocking patterns induced by migratory anticyclones–, as well as associated mesoscale phenomena, especially coastal lows and foehn wind systems. Moreover, prominent differences in wildfire characteristics are found between distinct extreme weather events, such as heat waves and single hot days.As a second task, we explore the intra-seasonal evolution leading to selected weather patterns associated with wildfires in SCC. We find groups of events that reveal different sequences of significant mid-latitude and tropical circulation anomalies up to 14 days before the wildfire start dates. For each group, we show that the corresponding weather-fire relationship is in fact mediated by a distinct trajectory of the Fire Weather Index (FWI). Finally, we suggest a scheme based on the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) index and the Standardized Extra-Tropical Index (sETI) to monitor intra-seasonal atmospheric teleconnections favoring weather fire in SCC.

We examined fentanyl use and outcomes among people who inject drugs (PWID) in the urban Pacific Northwest (PNW). We conducted secondary analysis of data from the 2022 National HIV Behavioral Surveillance PWID cycle from Seattle, WA and Portland, OR. We calculated proportions of any fentanyl, injection fentanyl, non-injection fentanyl, and street pill use. Next, we compared characteristics, behaviors, and outcomes by any fentanyl use. Finally, we estimated adjusted relative risk (aRR) of overdose outcomes associated with fentanyl use and injecting less associated with type of street pill use. Among 830 PWID, 76% reported any fentanyl use, 47% specifically reported injection fentanyl use, 68% specifically reported non-injection fentanyl use, and 66% reported street pill use. Of those who used pills, 94% smoked them. Fentanyl use was crudely associated with age; race; housing; detainment; usual drug injected; injection frequency; syringe service programs, substance treatment, non-fatal overdose, and naloxone (p < 0.05). With adjustment, any fentanyl use (aRR = 3.20, 95% CI 1.58-6.47), injection fentanyl use (aRR = 3.51, 95% CI 1.63-7.58), and non-injection fentanyl use (aRR = 2.29, 95% CI 1.23-4.28) were associated with higher risk of overdose. Participants who smoked street pills were more likely to report injecting less because of pill use (aRR = 1.82, 95% CI 1.24-2.66). Fentanyl use was highly prevalent among PWID in the urban PNW. Non-injection fentanyl use was most common and street pills were frequently administered by smoking which was associated with injecting less. All fentanyl use was associated with increased risk for overdose. There is ongoing need for access to naloxone for PWID who use fentanyl.

Endosomal escape is a central barrier to efficient nucleic acid delivery by lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) and remains challenging to quantify in vivo. We report a library of branched ionizable phospholipids that markedly enhance messenger RNA delivery to the liver. The lead candidate BiP-20 outperformed the clinical benchmark LP01 by eightfold for CRISPR-Cas9 editing of the TTR gene at low dose with rapid pharmacokinetics. To quantify the endosomal escape kinetics of BiP-20, we used LysoTag mice, which allow immunoisolation of liver lysosomes, and our Lysosomal Barcoding method, finding that ~8% of BiP-20 LNPs reach the cytosol within 30 min of administration. Lysosomal proteomics revealed mechanistic regulators of escape and BiP-20-induced alterations in endosomal maturation and recycling pathways. Loss of Rab7, a mediator of late endosomal maturation, increased LNP escape. These findings provide a potent class of ionizable lipids for RNA delivery, a method to quantify endosomal escape in vivo, and mechanistic insight into the endolysosomal determinants of LNP trafficking.

The Portland study examined past planning regulations and greenspace distribution over the period of fifty years, with particular attention given to neighborhood differences between invested and non-invested neighborhoods. This exploratory study examined spatial greenspace using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) imagery. We tested the study hypothesis using the GIS Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression test to predict how key sociodemographic characteristics affect the provision of greenspace in non-white disinvested neighborhoods. The key findings suggested a consistent pattern of greenspace inequality, heavily shaped by historically disadvantaged ethnic status. Areas with higher non-white populations may have significant less greenspace (p &lt; 0.001). Although median household income had a minimal negative impact, educational attainment showed a slight positive correlation. We employed multidisciplinary theoretical frameworks such as historical institutionalism, urban political ecology, and environmental justice. The study illustrated how historical decisions may have established path dependencies that are currently perpetuating greenspace inequalities. Policy solutions advocate for integrating restorative justice principles and rigid enforcement of 3-30-300 greenspace equity legislation to offset these long-term disparities.

Female sex workers (FSWs) face heightened health risks, particularly from HIV, which accounts for 8% of FSW deaths in low- and middle-income countries. Adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) remains suboptimal and few studies have explored drivers of ART non-adherence among FSWs who died from HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. Using a community knowledge approach methodology, data on HIV-related deaths among FSWs were collected from a convenience sample across Kenya, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo between 1 February 2022, and 28 February 2023. Participants were recruited through local sex worker organizations and non-governmental organizations. A structured questionnaire was used to collect demographic data, HIV treatment history, and reasons for ART non-adherence from participants about the deaths of FSWs they knew of personally. A qualitative descriptive analysis was used to code the interviews for reasons for ART non-adherence. A total of 853 FSWs reported the deaths of 445 peers who had died from HIV/AIDS. The mean age at death was 27 years; 70.6% were mothers. Among the deceased, 95.1% were not taking antiretrovirals at the time of their death, and 90% had stopped using ART, rather than never initiating treatment. The most cited reasons for ART non-adherence were food insecurity (97; 22.9%), alcohol and drug use (44; 10.4%), depression (57; 13.5%), and stigma (24; 5.7%). HIV-related deaths among FSWs in these three sub-Saharan African countries are associated with food insecurity, mental health issues, substance use, and stigma. Improving access to ART alone is insufficient to reduce mortality.