青藏高原牧区家庭能源消费对生态环境和人体健康的影响研究现状与展望

探究家庭能源消费对生态环境和人体健康的研究是系统推进家庭能源绿色低碳转型和实现联合国2030可持续发展目标的关键。重点综述了目前家庭能源消费、影响因素及其对生态环境和居民健康影响的国际研究现状。目前研究不足主要聚焦在以下两个方面：一方面,影响家庭能源消费因素的贡献率和影响消费行为的驱动机制尚不清晰;另一方面,目前主要针对家庭能源消费或者生态系统或者环境或者居民健康其中的某一方面或者某两个方面开展研究,鲜有研究系统的考虑家庭能源消费对生态环境和人体健康影响的综合研究。基于上述研究现状,结合青藏高原的实际情况,提出未来需要在宏观层面和微观层面加强研究。宏观层面：(1)亟需厘清青藏高原家庭能源与生态环境和人体健康之间的内在联系与驱动机制,形成青藏高原牧区“家庭能源-生态效应-环境效应-健康效应”的理论分析框架;(2)构建模块化的牧区“能源-生态-环境-健康-经济”等多学科交叉的综合评估模型,形成完整的、系统的评估方法。微观层面：(1)迫切开展青藏高原家庭能源消费特征与变化规律的研究;(2)深入开展家庭能源消费特征和变化规律与生态系统的反馈机制与量化研究;(3)加强牧区室内空气污染物浓度测定,...     

Mapping and monitoring tick (Acari,Ixodida) distribution,seasonality, and host associations in the United Kingdom between 2017 and 2020

Tick-borne disease risk is intrinsically linked to the distribution of tick vector species. To assess risk and anticipate disease emergence, an understanding of tick distribution, host associations, and seasonality is needed. This can be achieved, to some extent, using passive surveillance supported by engagement with the public, animal health, and public health experts. The Tick Surveillance Scheme (TSS) collects data and maps tick distribution across the United Kingdom (UK). Between 2017 and 2020, 3720 tick records were received and 39 tick species were detected. Most records were acquired in the UK, with a subset associated with recent overseas travel. The dominant UK acquired species was Ixodes ricinus (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Linnaeus), the main vector of Lyme borreliosis. Records peaked during May and June, highlighting a key risk period for tick bites. Other key UK species were detected, including Dermacentor reticulatus (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Fabricius) and Haemaphysalis punctata (Ixodida: Ixodidae, Canestrini & Fanzago) as well as several rarer species that may present novel tick-borne disease risk to humans and other animals. Updated tick distribution maps highlight areas in the UK where tick exposure has occurred. There is evidence of increasing human tick exposure over time, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, but seasonal patterns remain unchanged.     

The impact of health insurance affiliation and socioeconomic status on cervical cancer survival in Bucaramanga,Colombia

Cervical cancer is still an important cause of death in countries like Colombia. We aimed to determine whether socioeconomic status of residential address (SES) and type of health insurance affiliation (HIA) might be associated with cervical cancer survival among women in Bucaramanga, Colombia. All patients residing in the Bucaramanga Metropolitan Area diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer (ICD-0–3 codes C53.X) between 2008 and 2016 (n = 725) were identified through the population-based cancer registry, with 700 women having follow-up data for >5 years (date of study closure: Dec 31, 2021), yielding an overall 5-year survival estimate (95 % CI) of 56.4 % (52.7 – 60.0 %). KM estimates of 5-year overall survival were obtained to assess differences in cervical cancer survival by SES and HIA. Multivariable Cox-proportional hazards modeling was also conducted, including interaction effects between SES and HIA. Five-year overall survival was lower when comparing low vs. high SES (41.9 % vs 57.9 %, p < 0.0001) and subsidized vs. contributive HIA (45.1 % vs 63.0 %, p < 0.0001). Multivariable Cox modeling showed increased hazard ratios (HR) of death for low vs. high SES (HR = 1.78; 95 % CI = 1.18–2.70) and subsidized vs. contributive HIA (HR = 1.44; 95 % CI = 1.13–1.83). The greatest disparity in HR was among women of low SES affiliated to subsidized HIA (vs. contributive HIA and high SES) (HR=2.53; 95 % CI = 1.62–3.97). Despite Colombia’s universal healthcare system, important disparities in cervical cancer survival by health insurance affiliation and socioeconomic status remain.     

Substance use disorders: a comprehensive update of classification,epidemiology, neurobiology,clinical aspects,treatment and prevention

Substance use disorders (SUDs) are highly prevalent and exact a large toll on individuals’ health, well-being, and social functioning. Long-lasting changes in brain networks involved in reward, executive function, stress reactivity, mood, and self-awareness underlie the intense drive to consume substances and the inability to control this urge in a person who suffers from addiction (moderate or severe SUD). Biological (including genetics and developmental life stages) and social (including adverse childhood experiences) determinants of health are recognized factors that contribute to vulnerability for or resilience against developing a SUD. Consequently, prevention strategies that target social risk factors can improve outcomes and, when deployed in childhood and adolescence, can decrease the risk for these disorders. SUDs are treatable, and evidence of clinically significant benefit exists for medications (in opioid, nicotine and alcohol use disorders), behavioral therapies (in all SUDs), and neuromodulation (in nicotine use disorder). Treatment of SUDs should be considered within the context of a Chronic Care Model, with the intensity of intervention adjusted to the severity of the disorder and with the concomitant treatment of comorbid psychiatric and physical conditions. Involvement of health care providers in detection and management of SUDs, including referral of severe cases to specialized care, offers sustainable models of care that can be further expanded with the use of telehealth. Despite advances in our understanding and management of SUDs, individuals with these conditions continue to be stigmatized and, in some countries, incarcerated, highlighting the need to dismantle policies that perpetuate their criminalization and instead develop policies to ensure support and access to prevention and treatment.     

Relationship between grass species richness and ecosystem stability in Kruger National Park, South Africa

The relationship between grass species richness and ecosystem stability was investigated in the Kruger National Park. A total of 135 489 individual grasses were identified from 189 sites spread across 19 485 km² of savanna biome, making this one of the largest studies of its kind. At each site, grass percentage abundance and standing crop were measured at one year intervals to provide an index of ecosystem function. A severe drought that affected the region between 1991 and 1993 provided a convenient perturbation. At the height of the drought, mean species richness declined by 12.7% while standing crop declined by 38.1%, from 3199 to 1979 kg ha^?1. Percentage grass abundance declined to 87.5% of its pre‐drought value. After the drought had passed species richness, standing crop and percentage abundance recovered to 92.1%, 113.8% and 92.8% of their pre‐perturbation values, respectively. Statistical analysis of these responses revealed that grass assemblages of low species richness were more resistant to drought than assemblages of high species richness. Species‐poor sites also showed better recovery from perturbation after the drought had passed. These findings suggest that ecosystem stability may be negatively related to grass species richness in South African savanna grasslands.     

Root productivity in a lowland tropical rain forest in Mexico

Fine root productivity was estimated in a lowland tropical rain forest at Los Tuxtlas (SE Mexico) and examined in relation to climatic factors. Two root diameter classes were defined (class I,<1 mm; class II, 1–3 mm). Total root productivity was estimated to 1.95 t ha^–1 year^–1, a value which is lower than those reported from other rain forest sites. Significant differences in root dry weight were found among months and between diameter classes throughout the year. Class I monthly means formed two groups: one corresponding to the months of highest precipitation, and the other to the relatively dry season. Class II monthly means also formed two groups, although these were unrelated to the regional precipitation pattern. A multiplicative regression model of productivity on precipitation was significant for both root classes when rainfall data of the previous month were used, while a linear regression model was significant only for class I roots when temperature data of two months before were used; these results suggest a delay in the effect of climatic conditions on root productivity. While the seasonal pattern of root productivity is clearly related to the annual rainfall distribution, the low total annual productivity may be related to the very high soil fertility at Los Tuxtlas.     

The ecosystem approach to environmental assessment: moving from theory to practice

The ecosystem approach to environmental management is viewed by many as being fundamental to the development of appropriate management strategies. While this approach represents a major advance in the way researchers view environmental assessment, the approach in itself does not provide practical information as to what questions to ask and what tools to use in assessing and managing ecosystems. Similarly, the concept of ecosystem health, as it is usually defined, has little practical value for ecosystem managers. We suggest the next stage in environmental assessment will be the development of specific frameworks designed to assess individual ecosystems. Of primary importance is the need to consider the basic structure and function of the ecosystem itself. Such consideration, together with explicit identification of anthropogenic stresses particular to the system, serves to identify those components most at risk and those issues most deserving of attention. Researchers should explore critical linkages between environmental stressors and their observable, measurable and predictable effects on ecological parameters and use this understanding to develop a management strategy that incorporates appropriate ecological indicators. The importance of these considerations will be illustrated using examples from the Northern River Basins Study.     

Global vegetation models: incorporating transient changes to structure and composition

Abstract. We describe an approach for developing a Dynamic Global Vegetation Model (DGVM) that accounts for transient changes in vegetation distribution over a decadal time scale. The DGVM structure is based on a linkage between an equilibrium global vegetation model and smaller scale ecosystem dynamics modules that simulate the rate of vegetation change. Vegetation change is classified into four basic types, based largely on the projected change in above-ground biomass of the vegetation. These four types of change are: (1) dieback of forest, shrubland or grassland; (2) successional replacement within forest, shrubland or grassland; (3) invasion of forest, shrubland or grassland; (4) change in tree/grass ratio. We then propose an approach in which the appropriate ecosystem dynamics module for each type of change is applied and the grid cells of the global model updated accordingly. An approach for accounting for fire, as an example of a disturbance which may strongly influence the rate and spatial pattern of forest dieback, is incorporated. We also discuss data needs for the development, calibration and validation of the model.     

Perception of residential crowding,classroom experiences,and student health

The present research is based on a typology of crowding experiences incorporating two main dimensions: neutral-personal thwartings and primary-secondary environments. The thwarting dimension concerns the degree to which crowding experiences are associated with spatial inconveniences, alone, or with spatial as well as social constraints. The environmental dimension relates to the type of setting in which crowding experiences occur. A major assumption of this typology is that crowding experiences involving social conflict will be more intense and disruptive to the individual than those in which interpersonal conflict is minimal. The reported study examined the relationship between college students' evaluations of the physical amenity, social climate, and crowdedness of their residential environments, on the one hand, and their sensitivity to crowding in a classroom situation, their academic performance, and the frequency of their visits to the campus health center, on the other. Results indicated that perceived residential crowding and negative perceptions of residential social climate were strongly associated with increased sensitivity to crowding in a classroom situation, impaired course performance, and visits to the student health center. The implications of these correlational findings for future field-experimental research are discussed.     

Marine ecosystem dynamics: Comparison of scales

When marine and terrestrial ecological systems are compared at the same time scales, there are very great differences in their relations with their physical environments. Similarities arise when comparisons are made at different time scales. There are significant consequences for management.