We evaluated the effect of preservation methods by sub-culturing onto either sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA) or yeast extract soluble starch agar (YpSs) on growth, production and viability of spores and macro- and micromorphology. In this study, preservation methods for thermophilic fungi were investigated extensively for the first time and it is clearly shown that freezing block at -20 °C method and lyophilization were better methods for long-term preservation up to 5 years.In many spiders, females are significantly larger than males. Several theories have been postulated to explain sexual size dimorphism (SSD), including differential predation risks experienced by each sex early in life (including female cannibalism of males), male-male competition, and the more costly production of eggs than sperm. However, there is considerable intraspecific variation in the relative size of males and females that is reflected in trade-offs on traits such as growth rate and body size. When SSD favors female size, the body mass ratios between the smallest and largest males is expected to be much greater than in females. Here, growth trajectories and body masses of the false widow spider, Steatoda grossa, were compared in male and female spiders fed continually or intermittently. Males provided with unlimited prey (fruit flies and house crickets) took about 15 weeks to attain full size and sexual maturity and grew to a mean of 25 mg. By contrast, males fed only once every three weeks took approximately 6 weeks longer to reach maturity but were only about half as large (mean 13 mg) as males fed constantly. Females fed intermittently took almost twice as long (45 weeks versus 24 weeks) as constantly-fed females to reach maturity, but were almost 90% as large when fully grown. These results reveal that, although both sexes trade-off development time and body size to achieve the optimal phenotype, rapid development is more important than larger body size in males whereas the opposite is true in females. This finding supports life-history theory underpinning sexual-size dimorphism in some spider lineages.Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a debilitating and rapidly fatal neurodegenerative disease. Despite decades of research and many new insights into disease biology over the 150 years since the disease was first described, causative pathogenic mechanisms in ALS remain poorly understood, especially in sporadic cases. Our understanding of the role of the immune system in ALS pathophysiology, however, is rapidly expanding. The aim of this manuscript is to summarize the recent advances regarding the immune system involvement in ALS, with particular attention to clinical translation. We focus on the potential pathophysiologic mechanism of the immune system in ALS, discussing local and systemic factors (blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and microbiota) that influence ALS onset and progression in animal models and people. We also explore the potential of Positron Emission Tomography to detect neuroinflammation in vivo, and discuss ongoing clinical trials of therapies targeting the immune system. With validation in human patients, new evidence in this emerging field will serve to identify novel therapeutic targets and provide realistic hope for personalized treatment strategies.The steady rise in the prevalence of obesity has been fostered by modern environments that reduce energy expenditure and encourage consumption of 'western'-style diets high in fat and sugar. Obesity has been consistently associated with impairments in executive function and episodic memory, while emerging evidence indicates that high-fat, high-sugar diets can impair aspects of cognition within days, even when provided intermittently. Here we review the detrimental effects of diet and obesity on cognition and the role of inflammatory and circulating factors, compromised blood-brain barrier integrity and gut microbiome changes. We next evaluate evidence for changing risk profiles across life stages (adolescence and ageing) and other populations at risk (e.g. through maternal obesity). Finally, interventions to ameliorate diet-induced cognitive deficits are discussed, including dietary shifts, exercise, and the emerging field of microbiome-targeted therapies. With evidence that poor diet and obesity impair cognition via multiple mechanisms across the human lifespan, the challenge for future research is to identify effective interventions, in addition to diet and exercise, to prevent and ameliorate adverse effects. Survivors of critical illness have poor long-term outcomes with subsequent increases in healthcare utilisation. Less is known about the interplay between multimorbidity and long-term outcomes. How do baseline patient demographics impact mortality and healthcare utilisation in the year following discharge from critical care? Using data from a prospectively collected cohort, we employed propensity score matching to assess differences in outcomes between patients with a critical care encounter and patients admitted to the hospital without critical care. Long-term mortality was examined via nationally linked data as was hospital resource use in the year following hospital discharge. The cause of death was also examined. This analysis included 3112 participants. There was no difference in long-term mortality between the critical care and hospital cohorts (adjusted HR 1.09 (95% CI 0.90-1.32), p=0.39). Pre-hospitalisation emotional health issues such as a clinical diagnosis of depression, were associated with increased long-term mortality (HR1.49 (95% CI 1.14-1.96), p<0.004). Healthcare utilisation was different between the two cohorts in the year following discharge with the critical care cohort experiencing a 29% increased risk of hospital readmission (OR 1.29 (95% CI1.11-1.50), p=0.001). This national cohort study has demonstrated increased resource use for critical care survivors in the year following discharge but fails to replicate past findings of increased longer-term mortality. Bromelain Multimorbidity, lifestyle factors and socio-economic status appear influence long term outcomes and should be the focus of future research.This national cohort study has demonstrated increased resource use for critical care survivors in the year following discharge but fails to replicate past findings of increased longer-term mortality. Multimorbidity, lifestyle factors and socio-economic status appear influence long term outcomes and should be the focus of future research.