Activated Carbon as a Restoration Tool: Potential for Control of Invasive Plants in Abandoned Agricultural Fields

Exotic plants have been found to use allelochemicals, positive plant–soil feedbacks, and high concentrations of soil nutrients to exercise a competitive advantage over native plants. Under laboratory conditions, activated carbon (AC) has shown the potential to reduce these advantages by sequestering organic compounds. It is not known, however, if AC can effectively sequester organics or reduce exotic plant growth under field conditions. On soils dominated by exotic plants, we found that AC additions (1% AC by mass in the top 10 cm of soil) reduced concentrations of extractable organic C and N and induced consistent changes in plant community composition. The cover of two dominant exotics, Bromus tectorum and Centaurea diffusa, decreased on AC plots compared to that on control plots (14–8% and 4–0.1%, respectively), and the cover of native perennial grasses increased on AC plots compared to that on control plots (1.4–3% cover). Despite promising responses to AC by these species, some exotic species responded positively to AC and some native species responded negatively to AC. Consequently, AC addition did not result in native plant communities similar to uninvaded sites, but AC did demonstrate potential as a soil‐based exotic plant control tool, especially for B. tectorum and C. diffusa.     

Development of a Novel Heart Failure Risk Tool: The Barcelona Bio-Heart Failure Risk Calculator (BCN Bio-HF Calculator)

Background

A combination of clinical and routine laboratory data with biomarkers reflecting different pathophysiological pathways may help to refine risk stratification in heart failure (HF). A novel calculator (BCN Bio-HF calculator) incorporating N-terminal pro B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP, a marker of myocardial stretch), high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT, a marker of myocyte injury), and high-sensitivity soluble ST2 (ST2), (reflective of myocardial fibrosis and remodeling) was developed.

Methods

Model performance was evaluated using discrimination, calibration, and reclassification tools for 1-, 2-, and 3-year mortality. Ten-fold cross-validation with 1000 bootstrapping was used.

Results

The BCN Bio-HF calculator was derived from 864 consecutive outpatients (72% men) with mean age 68.2±12 years (73%/27% New York Heart Association (NYHA) class I-II/III-IV, LVEF 36%, ischemic etiology 52.2%) and followed for a median of 3.4 years (305 deaths). After an initial evaluation of 23 variables, eight independent models were developed. The variables included in these models were age, sex, NYHA functional class, left ventricular ejection fraction, serum sodium, estimated glomerular filtration rate, hemoglobin, loop diuretic dose, β-blocker, Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor/Angiotensin-2 receptor blocker and statin treatments, and hs-cTnT, ST2, and NT-proBNP levels. The calculator may run with the availability of none, one, two, or the three biomarkers. The calculated risk of death was significantly changed by additive biomarker data. The average C-statistic in cross-validation analysis was 0.79.

Conclusions

A new HF risk-calculator that incorporates available biomarkers reflecting different pathophysiological pathways better allowed individual prediction of death at 1, 2, and 3 years.     

The Evaluation of the Risk Factors for Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer (NMIBC) Recurrence after Transurethral Resection (TURBt) in Chinese Population

Objective

The risk factors of bladder cancer recurrence after transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBt) were poorly understood, especially in Chinese population. This study evaluated the potential risk factors of recurrence based on a Chinese population.

Materials and Methods

A total of 698 patients that received TURBt procedure in our institute from 2000 to 2012 were recruited in this study. Clinical information was collected. The patients were followed up according to the schedule recommended by Chinese guideline.

Results

A total of 583 males (83.5%) and 115 females (16.5%) were enrolled in our study. The median follow-up duration was 51.5 months. Gender, chief complain, tumor size, number of lesions, histological grade and chemotherapeutic agents were found significantly associated with patients’ short-term recurrence (less than 1 year) (All p<0.05). In the multivariate analysis, tumor size, number of lesions, histological grade and chemotherapeutic agents were significantly related to patients’ short-term recurrence (less than 1 year) (All p<0.05). A multivariate model based on tumor size, number of lesions, histological grade and chemotherapeutic agents had an AUC of 0.697, which significantly improved the prediction utility for bladder cancer short-term recurrence (less than 1 year) than any single factor In the multivariate Cox regression, tumor size greater than 3 cm, multifocal lesions, worsen histological grade and non-urothelial carcinoma was related to time to recurrence (TR).

Conclusion

Patients with larger tumor size, multifocal number of lesions, higher tumor grade and who received chemotherapeutic agents other than Epirubicin and Pirarubicin might have higher risks of recurrence less than 1 year. Tumor size, number of lesions, pathology and histological grade might be associated with TR. As Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) is currently not approved for bladder cancer in China, Epirubicin and Pirarubicin might be considered prior to other chemotherapy medications when providing post-operative instillation of chemotherapy.     

Waist Circumference as a Screening Tool for Cardiovascular Risk Factors: Evaluation of Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC)

To evaluate the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) to determine the cutoffs of waist circumference as a potential population directed screening tool for hypercholesterolaemia (≥6.5 mmol/L), low high density lipoprotein cholesterol (<0.9 mmol/L), and hypertension (treated and/or systolic ≥160 and/or diastolic blood pressure ≥95 mmHg), in 2183 men and 2698 women aged 20 to 59 years selected at random from Dutch civil registries. Main outcome measures: Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, total plasma cholesterol and high density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations, and blood pressure. Results: ROC curves showed that sensitivity equalled specificity at waist circumferences between 93–95 cm in men and 81–84 cm in women for identifying individual risk factors, and 92 cm in men and 81 cm in women for identifying those with at least one risk factor. Sensitivity and specificity were equal at levels between 61% to 69% for identifying individual risk factors, with positive predictions (56.8% in men and 37.8% in women) within 2% of those using previously defined ‘Action Level 1’ of waist circumference 94 cm in men and 80 cm in women (58.8% in men and 37.4% in women). Risk prediction by anthropometric methods was relatively low: ROC areas for identifying each risk factor by waist varied from 55% to 60%, and reached about 65% for identifying at least one risk factor. Height accounted for less than 03% of variance in waist circumference. Using BMI at 25 kg/m² gave similar prediction to waist, but its combination with waist did not improve predictive values. Conclusions: Measurement of waist circumference ‘Action Level 1’ at 94 cm (37 inches) in men and 80 cm (32 inches) in women could be adopted as a simpler valid alternative to BMI for health promotion, to alert those at risk of cardiovascular disease, and as a guide to risk avoidance by self-weight management     

Predicting Stroke Risk Based on Health Behaviours: Development of the Stroke Population Risk Tool (SPoRT)

Background

Health behaviours, important factors in cardiovascular disease, are increasingly a focus of prevention. We appraised whether stroke risk can be accurately assessed using self-reported information focused on health behaviours.

Methods

Behavioural, sociodemographic and other risk factors were assessed in a population-based survey of 82 259 Ontarians who were followed for a median of 8.6 years (688 000 person-years follow-up) starting in 2001. Predictive algorithms for 5-year incident stroke resulting in hospitalization were created and then validated in a similar 2007 survey of 28 605 respondents (median 4.2 years follow-up).

Results

We observed 3 236 incident stroke events (1 551 resulting in hospitalization; 1 685 in the community setting without hospital admission). The final algorithms were discriminating (C-stat: 0.85, men; 0.87, women) and well-calibrated (in 65 of 67 subgroups for men; 61 of 65 for women). An index was developed to summarize cumulative relative risk of incident stroke from health behaviours and stress. For men, each point on the index corresponded to a 12% relative risk increase (180% risk difference, lowest (0) to highest (9) scores). For women, each point corresponded to a 14% relative risk increase (340% difference, lowest (0) to highest (11) scores). Algorithms for secondary stroke outcomes (stroke resulting in death; classified as ischemic; excluding transient ischemic attack; and in the community setting) had similar health behaviour risk hazards.

Conclusion

Incident stroke can be accurately predicted using self-reported information focused on health behaviours. Risk assessment can be performed with population health surveys to support population health planning or outside of clinical settings to support patient-focused prevention.     

Potential Applications of Population Viability Analysis to Risk Assessment for Invasive Species

Population viability analysis, the use of ecological models to assess a population's risk of extinction, plays an important role in contemporary conservation biology. The premise of this review is that models, concepts, and data analyses that yield results on extinction risk of threatened and endangered species can also tell us about establishment risks of potentially invasive species. I briefly review important results for simple unstructured models, demographic models, and spatial models, giving examples of the application of each type of model to invasive species, and general conclusions about the applicability of each type of model to risk analysis for invasive species. The examples illustrate a portion of the range of potential applications of such models to invasive species, and some of the types of predictions that they can provide. They also highlight some of the limitations of such models. Finally, I present several conjectures and open research questions concerning the application of population viability analyses to risk analysis and control of invasive species.     

Ultrasound Transmission Technique as a Potential Tool for Physical Evaluation of Monolithic Matrix Tablets

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of tablet porosity and particle size fraction of compacted Starch acetate powders, with and without model drug caffeine, on acoustic properties of tablets. The ultrasound velocity was determined from the transmission measurements. Tablets of starch acetate (SA DS 2.7) powder with two particle size fractions of 0–53 and 0–710 μm were compressed with a compaction simulator. Porosities of tablets varied in the range from 12% to 43% for both particle size fractions. Strong associations were found between the ultrasound velocity and physical properties of the tablets such as porosity and particle size fraction. Interestingly, ultrasound velocity was practically insensitive to inclusion of the model drug caffeine with the concentrations used. Based on this study ultrasound transmission method is a potential non-destructive tool for studying structural changes of tablets and other solid dosage forms.     

Electropenetrography (EPG): a Breakthrough Tool Unveiling Stink Bug (Pentatomidae) Feeding on Plants

In this article, we review and discuss the potential use of EPG (electropenetrography) as a powerful tool to unveil the feeding process of phytophagous stink bugs (pentatomids). These bugs are relatively big and vigorous, which presents a problem during wiring (i.e., attachment of the gold wire on the bug’s pronotum) for use in EPG. Once this challenge was overcome, using the sand paper-and-wire technique, several species have been studied using EPG, yielding waveforms that, coupled with histological studies, revealed the ingestion sites on different host plants. These sites include vascular tissues (xylem and phloem), parenchyma tissue, and seed endosperm. Stink bugs usually feed by secreting a gelling saliva to create a salivary sheath that surrounds the stylets and anchors/supports/lubricates them. However, using the cell rupture feeding strategy and the tactic of combined laceration (mechanical movements of the stylets) and maceration (action of chemical enzymes) breaks the plant cells enabling ingestion. The number of ingestion events and their duration is variable according to the feeding site. Waveforms generated have typical patterns according to the feeding site. Recent studies with several species of stink bugs have started to demonstrate the potential of EPG as a tool to unveil their feeding behavior. This may also be useful in the applied field of stink bug management, such as the development and screening of resistant genotypes and the action of chemical insecticides affecting their feeding and survivorship.     

Potential Distribution and Risk Assessment of an Invasive Plant Species: A Case Study of Hymenachne amplexicaulis in Australia

Given the limited resources available for weed management, a strategic approach is required to give the “best bang for your buck.” The current study incorporates: (1) a model ensemble approach to identify areas of uncertainty and commonality regarding a species invasive potential, (2) current distribution of the invaded species, and (3) connectivity of systems to identify target regions and focus efforts for more effective management. Uncertainty in the prediction of suitable habitat for H. amplexicaulis (study species) in Australia was addressed in an ensemble-forecasting approach to compare distributional scenarios from four models (CLIMATCH; CLIMEX; boosted regression trees [BRT]; maximum entropy [Maxent]). Models were built using subsets of occurrence and environmental data. Catchment risk was determined through incorporating habitat suitability, the current abundance and distribution of H. amplexicaulis, and catchment connectivity. Our results indicate geographic differences between predictions of different approaches. Despite these differences a number of catchments in northern, central, and southern Australia were identified as high risk of invasion or further spread by all models suggesting they should be given priority for the management of H. amplexicaulis. The study also highlighted the utility of ensemble approaches in indentifying areas of uncertainty and commonality regarding the species’ invasive potential.     

Assessing the Risk of Herbicides to Terrestrial Non-Target Plants Using Higher-Tier Studies

Risk assessment for non-target plants is based on single species phytotoxicity tests. This approach may not reflect relevant ecological processes in terrestrial ecosystems. The current risk assessment scheme is based on endpoints measured at the species level and the assessment of ecological effects relies on the extrapolation from one species to another or from a single species to a community. This extrapolation contains many uncertainties that may be reduced by adopting more realistic testing approaches. However, currently higher-tier plant studies are not obligatory in herbicide risk assessment. We reviewed the published literature and found that potential higher-tier approaches for terrestrial non-target plants are extremely limited. Sixteen studies were found that assessed the effects of herbicides on non-target plants by performing microcosms, mesocosms, or field studies. These studies showed that microcosms might provide useful data and help to reduce uncertainties associated with single-species tests. However, due to the limited number of available studies, much work is required to develop appropriate testing methods for regulatory processes. In addition, field experiments are necessary to establish baseline knowledge concerning the effects of herbicides on natural plant communities and to compare data generated in tiered testing approaches with data obtained from natural systems.     

Latitudinal Patterns in Phenotypic Plasticity and Fitness-Related Traits: Assessing the Climatic Variability Hypothesis (CVH) with an Invasive Plant Species

Phenotypic plasticity has been suggested as the main mechanism for species persistence under a global change scenario, and also as one of the main mechanisms that alien species use to tolerate and invade broad geographic areas. However, contrasting with this central role of phenotypic plasticity, standard models aimed to predict the effect of climatic change on species distributions do not allow for the inclusion of differences in plastic responses among populations. In this context, the climatic variability hypothesis (CVH), which states that higher thermal variability at higher latitudes should determine an increase in phenotypic plasticity with latitude, could be considered a timely and promising hypothesis. Accordingly, in this study we evaluated, for the first time in a plant species (Taraxacum officinale), the prediction of the CVH. Specifically, we measured plastic responses at different environmental temperatures (5 and 20°C), in several ecophysiological and fitness-related traits for five populations distributed along a broad latitudinal gradient. Overall, phenotypic plasticity increased with latitude for all six traits analyzed, and mean trait values increased with latitude at both experimental temperatures, the change was noticeably greater at 20° than at 5°C. Our results suggest that the positive relationship found between phenotypic plasticity and geographic latitude could have very deep implications on future species persistence and invasion processes under a scenario of climate change.     

Assessing Invasion Impact: Survey Design Considerations and Implications for Management of An Invasive Marine Plant

We use a three-year study of sheltered low shore assemblages colonised by the non-indigenous Asian kelp Undaria pinnatifida to explore survey design issues for assessing the ecological impacts of invasive species. The weight of evidence overall suggested little impact from Undaria on low shore assemblages, with control–impact contrasts that could plausibly be interpreted as impacts probably reflecting natural causes. We demonstrate that the potential for reaching incorrect conclusions regarding the impacts of invasive species using control–impact designs is greater than when such designs are used to assess traditional forms of anthropogenic impact. We suggest that a before–after control–impact framework is essential, but recognise that such an approach has a number of limitations. In particular, there is no assurance that the before–after impact site will be invaded at all, or to the extent that provides worst-case impact information for coastal managers. We discuss possible ways of assessing invasive species impacts, but suggest that the uncertainty inherent in extrapolating impact information to other places and times means that the precautionary principle should be applied, and worst-case impacts assumed, until the level of scientific uncertainty is reduced. Such an approach should only be applied, however, after an evaluation of the feasibility, costs and benefits of managing a particular pest in relation to other priorities for invasive species.     

Development and Evaluation of a Genetic Risk Score for Obesity

Multi-locus profiles of genetic risk, so-called “genetic risk scores,” can be used to translate discoveries from genome-wide association studies into tools for population health research. We developed a genetic risk score for obesity from results of 16 published genome-wide association studies of obesity phenotypes in European-descent samples. We then evaluated this genetic risk score using data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort GWAS sample (N = 10,745, 55% female, 77% white, 23% African American). Our 32-locus GRS was a statistically significant predictor of body mass index (BMI) and obesity among ARIC whites [for BMI, r = 0.13, p<1?×?10^?30; for obesity, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) = 0.57 (95% CI 0.55–0.58)]. The GRS predicted differences in obesity risk net of demographic, geographic, and socioeconomic information. The GRS performed less well among African Americans. The genetic risk score we derived from GWAS provides a molecular measurement of genetic predisposition to elevated BMI and obesity.[Supplemental materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Biodemography and Social Biology for the following resource: Supplement to Development & Evaluation of a Genetic Risk Score for Obesity.]     

Assessing the Environmental-Hazard Potential for Life Cycle Assessment,Eco-Efficiency and SEEbalance (8 pp)

Intention, Goal, Scope, Background BASF has developed the eco-efficiency analysis tool to address not only strategic issues but also issues posed by the marketplace, politics and research. The goal was to develop a tool for supporting decision-making processes, which is useful for many of applications in the Chemical and other industries. A part of the eco-efficiency analysis involves the evaluation of the toxicity and the eco-toxicity potential. Objectives Many life cycle analyses do not include an assessment of the toxicity potential nor the eco-toxicity potential. However, in order to arrive at a comprehensive assessment of products and processes, it is often the eco-toxicity potential, which constitutes an important factor with regard to the evaluation of sustainability. The cradle-to-grave approach is also important for this calculation and will be done based on a database that will be discussed also in this paper. Methods The method used for the determination of the eco-toxicity potential follows the basic rules of the European Union Risk Ranking System (EURAM). The other criteria of the ecological fingerprint are combined with the economical results in the eco-efficiency portfolio. Results and Discussion The results of the studies are shown in a simple diagram, the eco-efficiency portfolio. Therefore ecological data are summarized in a special manner as described previously. It has been shown that the weighting factors, which are used in our method, have a negligible impact on the results. In most cases, the input data have the dominant impact on the results of the study. The eco-toxicity assessment will be a part of the ecological calculation. Because of the cradle-to-grave approach, substances of the whole life cycle can be identified that might have a toxic impact to the environment. The results can be used for optimization of the process. Conclusions The new calculation model allows the assessment of eco-toxicological substances in an appropriate and easy way. In most of the cases the data from a European safety data sheet are sufficient for the calculation. The normalized data can be incorporated very easily in the ecological fingerprint and in the drawing of the eco-efficiency portfolio. Recommendations and Outlook LCA in combination with the evaluation of the eco-toxicity potential will for reasons of optimizing for least impact become more important in certain cases. Especially in those systems where water emissions are likely, the use of the evaluation system in the eco-efficiency analysis is recommended. This new methodology allows the calculation of eco-toxicity potentials in a short time with a small set of input information. The analytical eco-efficiency tool helps in implementing more sustainable processes and products in the future.     

入侵植物紫茎泽兰化感作用及其途径研究

紫茎泽兰广泛入侵中国西南地区,研究结果表明化感作用是其入侵的重要武器,但其化感作用的途径并不十分清楚。本研究中,我们发现紫茎泽兰可以通过多种途径对两种栽培植物大麦和玉米的生长产生化感作用,这些途径包括了叶挥发物、叶淋溶物以及根分泌物。并且在紫茎泽兰幼苗早期就可以检测到这些化感作用。然而,没有实验证据表明紫茎泽兰落叶的微生物降解物对两种测试植物具有化感作用。     

Evaluation of Toxicogenomics Approaches for Assessing the Risk of Nongenotoxic Carcinogenicity in Rat Liver

The current gold-standard method for cancer safety assessment of drugs is a rodent two-year bioassay, which is associated with significant costs and requires testing a high number of animals over lifetime. Due to the absence of a comprehensive set of short-term assays predicting carcinogenicity, new approaches are currently being evaluated. One promising approach is toxicogenomics, which by virtue of genome-wide molecular profiling after compound treatment can lead to an increased mechanistic understanding, and potentially allow for the prediction of a carcinogenic potential via mathematical modeling. The latter typically involves the extraction of informative genes from omics datasets, which can be used to construct generalizable models allowing for the early classification of compounds with unknown carcinogenic potential. Here we formally describe and compare two novel methodologies for the reproducible extraction of characteristic mRNA signatures, which were employed to capture specific gene expression changes observed for nongenotoxic carcinogens. While the first method integrates multiple gene rankings, generated by diverse algorithms applied to data from different subsamplings of the training compounds, the second approach employs a statistical ratio for the identification of informative genes. Both methods were evaluated on a dataset obtained from the toxicogenomics database TG-GATEs to predict the outcome of a two-year bioassay based on profiles from 14-day treatments. Additionally, we applied our methods to datasets from previous studies and showed that the derived prediction models are on average more accurate than those built from the original signatures. The selected genes were mostly related to p53 signaling and to specific changes in anabolic processes or energy metabolism, which are typically observed in tumor cells. Among the genes most frequently incorporated into prediction models were Phlda3, Cdkn1a, Akr7a3, Ccng1 and Abcb4.     

入侵植物紫茎泽兰化感作用及其途径研究

紫茎泽兰广泛入侵中国西南地区,研究结果表明化感作用是其入侵的重要武器,但其化感作用的途径并不十分清楚。本研究中,我们发现紫茎泽兰可以通过多种途径对两种栽培植物大麦和玉米的生长产生化感作用,这些途径包括了叶挥发物、叶淋溶物以及根分泌物。并且在紫茎泽兰幼苗早期就可以检测到这些化感作用。然而,没有实验证据表明紫茎泽兰落叶的微生物降解物对两种测试植物具有化感作用。