The economic value of an improved malaria treatment programme in Zambia: results from a contingent valuation survey

Background

Pools of salt water and puddles created by giant waves from the sea due to the tsunami that occurred on 26^th December 2004 would facilitate increased breeding of brackish water malaria vector, Anopheles sundaicus. Land uplifts in North Andaman and subsidence in South Andaman have been reported and subsidence may lead to environmental disturbances and vector proliferation. This warrants a situation analysis and vector surveillance in the tsunami hit areas endemic for malaria transmitted by brackish water mosquito, An. sundaicus to predict the risk of outbreak.

Methods

An extensive survey was carried out in the tsunami-affected areas in Andaman district of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India to assess the extent of breeding of malaria vectors in the habitats created by seawater flooding. Types of habitats in relation to source of seawater inundation and frequency were identified. The salinity of the water samples and the mosquito species present in the larval samples collected from these habitats were recorded. The malaria situation in the area was also analysed.

Results

South Andaman, covering Port Blair and Ferrargunj sub districts, is still under the recurring phenomenon of seawater intrusion either directly from the sea or through a network of creeks. Both daily cycles of high tides and periodical spring tides continue to cause flooding. Low-lying paddy fields and fallow land, with a salinity ranging from 3,000 to 42,505 ppm, were found to support profuse breeding of An. sundaicus, the local malaria vector, and Anopheles subpictus, a vector implicated elsewhere. This area is endemic for both vivax and falciparum malaria. Malaria slide positivity rate has started increasing during post-tsunami period, which can be considered as an indication of risk of malaria outbreak.

Conclusion

Paddy fields and fallow land with freshwater, hitherto not considered as potential sites for An. sundaicus, are now major breeding sites due to saline water. Consequently, there is a risk of vector abundance with enhanced malaria transmission potential, due to the vastness of these tsunami-created breeding grounds and likelihood of them becoming permanent due to continued flooding in view of land subsidence. The close proximity of the houses and paucity of cattle may lead to a higher degree of man/vector contact causing a threat of malaria outbreak in this densely populated area. Measures to prevent the possible outbreak of malaria in this tsunami-affected area are discussed.     

A measurement error model for time-series studies of air pollution and mortality

One barrier to interpreting the observational evidence concerning the adverse health effects of air pollution for public policy purposes is the measurement error inherent in estimates of exposure based on ambient pollutant monitors. Exposure assessment studies have shown that data from monitors at central sites may not adequately represent personal exposure. Thus, the exposure error resulting from using centrally measured data as a surrogate for personal exposure can potentially lead to a bias in estimates of the health effects of air pollution. This paper develops a multi-stage Poisson regression model for evaluating the effects of exposure measurement error on estimates of effects of particulate air pollution on mortality in time-series studies. To implement the model, we have used five validation data sets on personal exposure to PM10. Our goal is to combine data on the associations between ambient concentrations of particulate matter and mortality for a specific location, with the validation data on the association between ambient and personal concentrations of particulate matter at the locations where data have been collected. We use these data in a model to estimate the relative risk of mortality associated with estimated personal-exposure concentrations and make a comparison with the risk of mortality estimated with measurements of ambient concentration alone. We apply this method to data comprising daily mortality counts, ambient concentrations of PM10measured at a central site, and temperature for Baltimore, Maryland from 1987 to 1994. We have selected our home city of Baltimore to illustrate the method; the measurement error correction model is general and can be applied to other appropriate locations.Our approach uses a combination of: (1) a generalized additive model with log link and Poisson error for the mortality-personal-exposure association; (2) a multi-stage linear model to estimate the variability across the five validation data sets in the personal-ambient-exposure association; (3) data augmentation methods to address the uncertainty resulting from the missing personal exposure time series in Baltimore. In the Poisson regression model, we account for smooth seasonal and annual trends in mortality using smoothing splines. Taking into account the heterogeneity across locations in the personal-ambient-exposure relationship, we quantify the degree to which the exposure measurement error biases the results toward the null hypothesis of no effect, and estimate the loss of precision in the estimated health effects due to indirectly estimating personal exposures from ambient measurements.     

A mortality survey of free range nutria (Myocastor coypus)

A review of the literature revealed little information on natural occurring diseases in wild nutria. In this report, a summary of necropsies performed on free-range animals from four different geographical areas, is presented. Fifty-two percent of the nutria had trauma (mostly by predation and road kill), 15% had poisoning by different toxics, and 11% had starvation. The rest died due to infectious diseases and miscellaneous causes, while 21 individuals had no significant lesions. The occurrence of infections seems sporadic with a far lower prevalence than in the farmed animals, while the incidence of poisoning is rather high. In addition, anthrax was diagnosed in two individuals. Thus, nutria are probably subject to mortality from a number of different human-induced causes rather than natural ones. Analysis of these records may provide insight into prevention of problem and better management practices.     

Impact of traffic related air pollution indicators on non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis mortality: a cohort analysis

Background

Mortality in non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFB) is known to be influenced by a number of factors such as gender, age, smoking history and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but the impact of traffic related air pollution indicators on NCFB mortality is unknown.

Methods

We followed 183 patients aged 18 to 65 years with a HRCT proven diagnosis of NCFB and typical symptoms, who had visited the outpatient clinic at the University Hospital of Leuven, Belgium, between June 2006 and October 2012. We estimated hazard ratios (HR) for mortality in relation to proximity of the home to major roads and traffic load, adjusting for relevant covariables (age, gender, disease severity, chronic macrolide use, smoking history, socioeconomic status and Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonization status).

Results

Fifteen out of the 183 included patients died during the observation period. Residential proximity to a major road was associated with the risk of dying with a HR 0.28 (CI 95% 0.10-0.77; p = 0.013) for a tenfold increase in distance to a major road. Mortality was also associated with distance-weighted traffic density within 100 meters (HR for each tenfold increase in traffic density 3.80; CI 95% 1.07-13.51; p = 0.04) and 200 meters from the patient’s home address (HR for each tenfold increase in traffic density 4.14; CI 95% 1.13-15.22; p = 0.032).

Conclusion

Traffic-related air pollution appears to increase the risk of dying in patients with NCFB.

Trial registration

The study was approved by the local ethical committee of the UZ Leuven, Belgium (ML-5028), registered at ClinicalTrial.gov ({"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT01906047","term_id":"NCT01906047"}}NCT01906047).     

Bayesian distributed lag models: estimating effects of particulate matter air pollution on daily mortality

Summary .  A distributed lag model (DLagM) is a regression model that includes lagged exposure variables as covariates; its corresponding distributed lag (DL) function describes the relationship between the lag and the coefficient of the lagged exposure variable. DLagMs have recently been used in environmental epidemiology for quantifying the cumulative effects of weather and air pollution on mortality and morbidity. Standard methods for formulating DLagMs include unconstrained, polynomial, and penalized spline DLagMs. These methods may fail to take full advantage of prior information about the shape of the DL function for environmental exposures, or for any other exposure with effects that are believed to smoothly approach zero as lag increases, and are therefore at risk of producing suboptimal estimates. In this article, we propose a Bayesian DLagM (BDLagM) that incorporates prior knowledge about the shape of the DL function and also allows the degree of smoothness of the DL function to be estimated from the data. We apply our BDLagM to its motivating data from the National Morbidity, Mortality, and Air Pollution Study to estimate the short-term health effects of particulate matter air pollution on mortality from 1987 to 2000 for Chicago, Illinois. In a simulation study, we compare our Bayesian approach with alternative methods that use unconstrained, polynomial, and penalized spline DLagMs. We also illustrate the connection between BDLagMs and penalized spline DLagMs. Software for fitting BDLagM models and the data used in this article are available online.     

大气污染规制对城市空气污染的防治成效——基于准实验分析

以2003年实施的大气污染防治重点城市政策为准自然实验,运用双重差分模型从区域层面分析了大气污染规制对城市空气污染治理的影响,研究发现：（1）大气污染规制在1%的显著性水平下降低了重点城市的工业二氧化硫排放强度,工业二氧化硫排放量以及城市PM2.5年均浓度值。（2）大气污染防治重点城市政策实施后的9年时间内有效减少了12215.8万t城市工业二氧化硫排放量,并且使得城市PM2.5年均浓度改善2.97μg/m3,下降比分别达到了36.2%和8.5%,平均每年减少了3.7%的城市工业二氧化硫排放量并降低0.944%的城市PM2.5浓度值。（3）大气污染防治重点城市政策对于城市空气污染治理主要是通过减少能源消耗量、增加城市污染治理力度、促进规制地区产业结构转型升级和提升生产技术水平等渠道予以实现。     

Periodic oscillations in the mortality of mice infected by a protozoan parasite (Plasmodium Berghei) (a five year study)

Abstract

The application of statistical periodic analysis confirms the existence of significant periodic fluctuations in the mortality of mice infected with a rodent malaria (Plasmodium berghei). The mice were obtained from a single commercial breeder and were kept under strict controlled environmental conditions. The duration of the study was five years. The infection was induced by weekly mouse‐to‐mouse passages of infected blood. The cumulative mortality at day 7 after the infection of each weekly passage was used for the study variable.

Analysis of the data shows that there are two periodic fluctuations in the mortality; a major one with a period of 48 weeks and a second, half of that — 24 weeks. The peaks of the 24‐week period appear to coincide with the peaks of the 48 week cycle. These periodic fluctuations are unlikely to be caused by random coincidence.     

Bacterial pollution of Messina coastal waters: a one year study

A year's monitoring of faecal pollution of marine coastal waters surrounding Messina was carried out in 1996/97. The distribution of faecal coliforms was evaluated in 15 stations located along the Sicilian coastline, sampled monthly in coincidence of the two opposing current phases ("montante" and "scendente" currents) which characterise the Straits of Messina. The data obtained provided a complete picture of hygienic-sanitary conditions of the area and highlighted the presence of heavily polluted sites in correspondence with river outflows. Higher bacterial counts were associated with lower salinity values and higher ammonia concentrations; over an annual study, they occurred during the coldest months, showing the negative impact of continental water inputs on the bacteriological quality of coastal waters.     

The life of Milaraspa in a picture series: A preliminary survey

Irrigation's Impact on Society. Theodore E. Downing &; McGuire Gibson (eds.), Anthropological Papers of The University of Arizona Number 25. Tucson, 1974, 181 pp.

Women: An Anthropological View. Evelyn S. Kessler. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York etc. 1976, 267 pp.

A History of Ethnology. Fred W. Voget. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York etc. 1975. ix + 879 pp. US $ 17.95.

Music in the Culture of Northern Afghanistan. Mark Slobin. Viking Fund Publications in Anthropology 54. Tucson: The University of Arizona press 1976. xiv + 297 pp., 8 maps, 56 illustrations, bibliography and index.

Java‐Masken. Der Tanz auf einem Bein. Heinz Lucas. Erich Röth Verlag. Kassel. 1973, pp. 347, ill.     

Biomagnetic monitoring of urban air pollution using moss bags (Sphagnum girgensohnii)

Active moss biomonitoring is widely applied in polluted areas for monitoring of airborne particle-bound trace element pollution. This study explored the suitability of the moss Sphagnum girgensohnii for biomagnetic monitoring in cities. To this end S. girgensohnii moss bags were exposed at three different microenvironments characterized by heavy traffic – street canyons, a city tunnel and parking garages during the summer and autumn of 2011 in the city of Belgrade. The ferro(i)magnetic PM fraction in the moss samples was quantified by Saturated Isothermal Remanent Magnetization (SIRM) and the measured values were compared with the trace element concentration in the moss samples. SIRM values were significantly different across the considered urban microenvironments. Moreover, a high correlation between moss SIRM values and concentrations of Al, Ba, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni and Pb was found. These results demonstrate that moss bags can be effectively applied for biomagnetic monitoring of the spatio-temporal distribution of road traffic and vehicles derived pollutants in urban areas.     

树皮pH值的变化及其对大气酸性气体污染的指示作用

1991～1993年在河北省承德市5个大气监测点测定8种常见绿化树种树皮pH值的变化,结果表明8种树皮pH值为3．5～7．0,平均值为5．7±0．6。不同功能区树皮pH从大到小依次为：公园区＞工业区＞生活居住区（P＜0．05）,与大气SO2等酸性气体的污染有关。同种植物的树皮浸提液SO2-4含量相对清洁区为2．516mg／g,污染区为5．342mg／g（P＜0．001）,两者之间的相关公式为Y＝2．576＋6．4736X（r＝0.7730,P＜0．001）。树皮pH与SO2-4呈极显著负相关,相关公式为Y＝7．1－0．3865X（r＝－0．8941,P＜0．001）。榆树等4种落叶阔叶树树皮对大气SO2的变化较敏感,可作为SO2等酸性气体的适宜指示与监测植物。     

mRNA: a complex(ed) life

A report of the EMBL conference 'The Complex Life of mRNA: From Synthesis to Decay', Heidelberg, Germany, 18-21 March 2010.     

选择容量价值:一个新的生态系统服务价值指标

对生态系统服务进行价值评估有助于落实生态系统的科学管理和推动生态补偿的科学实施。然而,传统的生态系统服务价值评估方法在管理实践应用中存在明显的局限性。为了规避这些局限性,另辟一条对生态系统服务价值评估的新思路,提出了描述生态系统服务价值的新指标——"选择容量价值"。选择容量价值以两个事实为基本依据:1)如果失去了任何一项生存所必需的生态系统服务(比如氧气、水),那么人类就无法生存,亦即人类经济社会活动所产生的价值是建立在消费该生态系统服务的基础上的;2)如果没有人类活动的存在,那么生态系统就给人类提供不了任何价值,亦即生态系统服务价值的度量是建立在生态系统服务所支持的人类经济社会活动所产生的价值上的。选择容量价值是指,一项人类生存生产所必需的生态系统服务,其总量为消费该生态系统服务的消费活动所提供的选择自由度(即选择容量)与该消费活动所产生的经济社会活动总价值的乘积,用非货币单位来计量。通过一个案例——对珠江流域的水资源供应的选择容量价值的估算,揭示选择容量价值对理解和量化生态系统服务价值的新洞察。结果显示,选择容量价值能够直观而综合地反映生态系统服务总量、生态系统服务消费量、社会经济...     

Occurrence of hepatitis viruses in wild-born non-human primates: a 3 year (1998-2001) epidemiological survey in Gabon

Hepatitis B and C infections are endemic in human population in central Africa, particularly in Gabon. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and eventual occurrence of hepatitis C virus (HBC)-related strains in a variety of wild-born non-human primates living in Gabon and Congo. Plasma samples were screened for HBV and HCV markers. A non-invasive method of DNA extraction from faeces followed by specific HBV-DNA amplification was developed to study this infection in wild troops of chimpanzees and gorillas. No HCV infection in non-human primates, wild-born or captive, was detected among 596 samples tested. No HBV infection could be detected in samples tested and obtained from Cercopithecidae. In contrast, 14.7 and 42.2% of wild-born chimpanzees in Gabon and Congo were infected with HBV or had evidence of past HBV infection. At Centre International de Recherches Médicales (CIRMF) Primate Centre, 32.1% of chimpanzees and gorillas were HBV positive or had evidence of past infection. In the cases with past infection, 5.9% wild-born and 8.3% at CIRMF harboured HBV-DNA despite the presence of neutralizing HbsAb. Together with previous findings, we confirm the high HBV prevalence not only in humans but also in chimpanzees and gorillas in Gabon and Congo.     

A study of air particulate pollution in colombo using a nuclear-related analytical technique

Air particulate matter of two size fractions (coarse [2.5–10 Μm] and fine [less than 2.5 Μm]) were collected at an urban residential site (Colombo University ground) over a period of 12 mo during 1996 using a Gent PM10 stacked filter unit. Seventy-five sets of samples collected during this period were analyzed for 10 elements: Al, Si, K, S, Ca, Ti, Fe, Zn, Br, and Pb by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence, which is a multielement analysis. This is a highly sensitive technique enabling quantitative analysis of very low masses. The average concentrations of lead, sulfur, and bromine, which are generally associated with combustion products of automotive exhausts, dominate the fine fraction in this study. The minimum and maximum concentration of lead resulting in an annual average of 0.09 Μg/m³ was found to be 0.0042 and 0.441 Μg/m³ in particulate matter with less than 10 Μm equivalent aerodynamic diameter. The maximum concentration determined is well below the limits set by the World Health Organization (0.5–1.0 Μg/m³). The recommended value for Pb in Sri Lanka is 0.5 Μg/m³. Al, Si, Ca, Ti, and Fe exhibited enhanced concentrations in the coarse fraction, which probably originate from disturbed soil as a result of wind and traffic.     

苔藓植物对西南部分地区大气污染(包括酸雨)的指示意义的初步研究

本文在对我国西南部分酸雨污染重区的树附生苔藓的种类、分布、盖度和频度的野外调查基础上,计算了各样点的大气净度指数(IAP)。据此,可将样区划分为:1)严重污染区,树附生苔藓0～2种,IAP值10以下,降水pH值3—3.5;2)污染区,树附生苔藓4—13种,IAP值10—30,降水pH值4—5;3)基本纯净区,树附生苔藓19种以上,IAP值40—90,降水pH值5.5—6.5。人工模拟酸雨对苔藓植物生长的影响的实验表明,pH3.0以下酸雨可使大部分苔藓种类在半年内死亡;pH4.5酸雨使80％苔藓植物在1年时间内死亡,但少数抗酸性种类,在pH3.0酸雨下仍生长良好。     

Natural mortality and cause of death analysis of the captive chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes): A 35‐year review

We present the spontaneous causes of mortality for 137 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) over a 35‐year period. A record review of the pathology database was performed and a primary cause of mortality was determined for each chimpanzee. The most common causes of mortality were as follows: cardiomyopathy (40% of all mortalities), stillbirth/abortion, acute myocardial necrosis, chimpanzee‐induced trauma, amyloidosis, and pneumonia. Five morphologic diagnoses accounted for 61% of mortalities: cardiomyopathy, hemorrhage, acute myocardial necrosis, amyloidosis, and pneumonia. The most common etiologies were degenerative, undetermined, bacterial, traumatic, and neoplastic. The cardiovascular system was most frequently involved, followed by the gastrointestinal, respiratory, and multisystemic diseases. Degenerative diseases were the primary etiological cause of mortality of the adult captive chimpanzee population. Chimpanzee‐induced trauma was the major etiological cause of mortality among the perinatal and infant population. This information should be a useful resource for veterinarians and researchers working with chimpanzees.