Cystic echinococcosis in Italy from the 1950s to present

In Italy the epidemiological pattern of cistic echinococcosis (CE) is incomplete and the information for most regions is out of date, contradictory, and almost exclusively limited to the intermediate hosts. The disease is found most frequently in particular social and economic conditions: widespread use of extensive or semi-extensive sheep farming, illegal slaughtering, and high numbers of sheepdogs and other types of dogs. The highest incidence in sheep is found in Sardinia (70.6-92.8%), Sicily (6.5-36.5%), Basilicata (5-28%), Abruzzo (22%) and Tuscany (47%). It North Italy, it is never higher than 0.5% in slaughtered sheep. No data are available on the biomolecular characterization of the strains of E. granulosus in Italy, apart from Sardinia and recently Lazio. G1 (Sheep strain), G7 (Pig strain) G2 (Tasmanian sheep strain) have been identified in Sardinia and G1 and G3 (Buffalo strain) have been recently isolated in Lazio. In Italy, CE has was also found in buffaloes (2.63-9.8%) and horses (<1%). However, further epidemiological surveys and genotyping study are necessary. The small quantity of up to date information on the diffusion of E. granulosus in dogs (Abruzzo 4%, Sardinia 6-10% and Sicily 19.3%) highlights the need for modern, fast, sensitive and low risk diagnostic methods which would provide a true picture of the pattern of the infection in this host.     

Interannual and interdecadal variation in California Current zooplankton: Calanus in the late 1950s and early 1990s

Samples from the southern California sector of the California Current System were examined to test for interannual changes in winter–spring abundance of the planktonic copepod, Calanus pacificus, coincident with the 1992–93 and 1958–59 El Niños, each evaluated relative to immediately preceding years, and for interdecadal change (the early 1990s relative to the late 1950s). Calanus was anomalously rare in both of the El Niño periods, as was macrozooplankton, but (unlike macrozooplanktonic biomass) was not rarer in the early 1990s than in the late 1950s. The El Niño anomalies in Calanus’s abundance and macrozooplanktonic biomass were not spatially correlated on the mesoscale, implying that different proximate ecological causes may dominate at this scale.     

Studies of the mortality of atomic bomb survivors. report 12, part I. Cancer: 1950-1990

This continues the series of periodic general reports on cancer mortality in the cohort of A-bomb survivors followed by the Radiation Effects Research Foundation. The follow-up is extended by the 5 years 1986-1990, and analysis includes an additional 10,500 survivors with recently estimated radiation doses. Together these extensions add about 550,000 person-years of follow-up. The cohort analyzed consists of 86,572 subjects, of which about 60% have dose estimates of at least 0.005 Sv. During 1950-1990 there have been 3086 and 4741 cancer deaths for the less than and greater than 0.005 Sv groups, respectively. It is estimated that among these there have been approximately 420 excess cancer deaths during 1950-1990, of which about 85 were due to leukemia. For cancers other than leukemia (solid cancers), about 25% of the excess deaths in 1950-1990 occurred during the last 5 years; for those exposed as children this figure is nearly 50%. For leukemia only about 3% of the excess deaths in 1950-1990 occurred in the last 5 years. Whereas most of the excess for leukemia occurred in the first 15 years after exposure, for solid cancers the pattern of excess risk is apparently more like a life-long elevation of the natural age-specific cancer risk. Taking advantage of the lengthening follow-up, increased attention is given to clarifying temporal patterns of the excess cancer risk. Emphasis is placed on describing these patterns in terms of absolute excess risk, as well as relative risk. For example: (a) although it is becoming clearer that the excess relative risk for those exposed as children has declined over the follow-up, the excess absolute risk has increased rapidly with time; and (b) although the excess relative risk at a given age depends substantially on sex and age at exposure, the age-specific excess absolute risk depends little on these factors. The primary estimates of excess risk are now given as specific to sex and age at exposure, and these include projections of dose-specific lifetime risks for this cohort. The excess lifetime risk per sievert for solid cancers for those exposed at age 30 is estimated at 0.10 and 0.14 for males and females, respectively. Those exposed at age 50 have about one-third these risks. Projection of lifetime risks for those exposed at age 10 is more uncertain. Under a reasonable set of assumptions, estimates for this group range from about 1.0-1.8 times the estimates for those exposed at age 30. The excess life-time risk for leukemia at 1 Sv for those exposed at either 10 or 30 years is estimated as about 0.015 and 0.008 for males and females, respectively. Those exposed at age 50 have about two-thirds that risk. Excess risks for solid cancer appear quite linear up to about 3 Sv, but for leukemia apparent nonlinearity in dose results in risks at 0.1 Sv estimated at about 1/20 of those for 1.0 Sv. Site-specific risk estimates are given, but it is urged that great care be taken in interpreting these, because most of their variation can be explained simply by imprecision in the estimates.     

Studies of mortality of atomic bomb survivors. Report 13: solid cancer and noncancer disease mortality: 1950-1997

This continues the series of general reports on mortality in the cohort of atomic bomb survivors followed up by the Radiation Effects Research Foundation. This cohort includes 86,572 people with individual dose estimates, 60% of whom have doses of at least 5 mSv. We consider mortality for solid cancer and for noncancer diseases with 7 additional years of follow-up. There have been 9,335 deaths from solid cancer and 31,881 deaths from noncancer diseases during the 47-year follow-up. Of these, 19% of the solid cancer and 15% of the noncancer deaths occurred during the latest 7 years. We estimate that about 440 (5%) of the solid cancer deaths and 250 (0.8%) of the noncancer deaths were associated with the radiation exposure. The excess solid cancer risks appear to be linear in dose even for doses in the 0 to 150-mSv range. While excess rates for radiation-related cancers increase throughout the study period, a new finding is that relative risks decline with increasing attained age, as well as being highest for those exposed as children as noted previously. A useful representative value is that for those exposed at age 30 the solid cancer risk is elevated by 47% per sievert at age 70. There is no significant city difference in either the relative or absolute excess solid cancer risk. Site-specific analyses highlight the difficulties, and need for caution, in distinguishing between site-specific relative risks. These analyses also provide insight into the difficulties in interpretation and generalization of LSS estimates of age-at-exposure effects. The evidence for radiation effects on noncancer mortality remains strong, with risks elevated by about 14% per sievert during the last 30 years of follow-up. Statistically significant increases are seen for heart disease, stroke, digestive diseases, and respiratory diseases. The noncancer data are consistent with some non-linearity in the dose response owing to the substantial uncertainties in the data. There is no direct evidence of radiation effects for doses less than about 0.5 Sv. While there are no statistically significant variations in noncancer relative risks with age, age at exposure, or sex, the estimated effects are comparable to those seen for cancer. Lifetime risk summaries are used to examine uncertainties of the LSS noncancer disease findings.     

Studies of mortality of atomic bomb survivors. Report 13: Solid cancer and noncancer disease mortality: 1950-1997

This continues the series of general reports on mortality in the cohort of atomic bomb survivors followed up by the Radiation Effects Research Foundation. This cohort includes 86,572 people with individual dose estimates, 60% of whom have doses of at least 5 mSv. We consider mortality for solid cancer and for noncancer diseases with 7 additional years of follow-up. There have been 9,335 deaths from solid cancer and 31,881 deaths from noncancer diseases during the 47-year follow-up. Of these, 19% of the solid cancer and 15% of the noncancer deaths occurred during the latest 7 years. We estimate that about 440 (5%) of the solid cancer deaths and 250 (0.8%) of the noncancer deaths were associated with the radiation exposure. The excess solid cancer risks appear to be linear in dose even for doses in the 0 to 150-mSv range. While excess rates for radiation-related cancers increase throughout the study period, a new finding is that relative risks decline with increasing attained age, as well as being highest for those exposed as children as noted previously. A useful representative value is that for those exposed at age 30 the solid cancer risk is elevated by 47% per sievert at age 70. There is no significant city difference in either the relative or absolute excess solid cancer risk. Site-specific analyses highlight the difficulties, and need for caution, in distinguishing between site-specific relative risks. These analyses also provide insight into the difficulties in interpretation and generalization of LSS estimates of age-at-exposure effects. The evidence for radiation effects on noncancer mortality remains strong, with risks elevated by about 14% per sievert during the last 30 years of follow-up. Statistically significant increases are seen for heart disease, stroke, digestive diseases, and respiratory diseases. The noncancer data are consistent with some non-linearity in the dose response owing to the substantial uncertainties in the data. There is no direct evidence of radiation effects for doses less than about 0.5 Sv. While there are no statistically significant variations in noncancer relative risks with age, age at exposure, or sex, the estimated effects are comparable to those seen for cancer. Lifetime risk summaries are used to examine uncertainties of the LSS noncancer disease findings.     

Habitat loss of floodplain meadows in north Germany since the 1950s

Floodplain meadows are severely threatened by land use change and intensification in Central Europe. This study investigates quantitative and qualitative changes in the vegetation of wet and species-rich mesic meadows in the floodplains of north Germany since the 1950s, considering their spatial extent, fragmentation, and replacement by other land use types. Historical high-resolution vegetation maps were compared with recent vegetation surveys in seven study regions (six unprotected areas, one protected reference area) in former West and East Germany. The unprotected sites showed alarming losses in wet and species-rich mesic meadows in the past 50 years (>80%). Wet meadows were substituted by species-poor, intensively managed grasslands (26–60% of the former area), arable fields (0–47%) or set-asides (2–33%). Species-rich mesic meadows were transformed to arable fields (42–72%) or species-poor, intensively managed meadows (14–72%). Decreases in effective mesh size and patch size indicated increasing fragmentation of wet meadows, whilst changes in landscape structure were less consistent in mesic meadows. Only slight changes in the protected floodplain study area indicate that landscape change is mostly caused by local effects such as fertilisation and drainage, but not by general trends such as atmospheric N deposition or climate warming. Despite the contrasting political systems in West and East Germany with different agroeconomic frames, all unprotected study areas showed similar losses and increasing fragmentation of floodplain meadows, which may negatively influence the natural dynamics of, and the gene flow between, meadow plant populations. We conclude that floodplain meadows in north Germany urgently call for high-priority conservation measures.     

Studies of the mortality of atomic bomb survivors. Report 12, part II. Noncancer mortality: 1950-1990.

This report updates the data on noncancer mortality for 86,572 atomic bomb survivors with dose estimates in the Radiation Effects Research Foundation's Life Span Study cohort. The primary analyses are based on more than 27,000 noncancer disease deaths that occurred in the cohort between October 1, 1950, and December 31, 1990, 30% more than in the previous report. The present analyses strengthen earlier findings of a statistically significant increase in noncancer disease death rates with radiation dose. Increasing trends are observed for diseases of the circulatory, digestive and respiratory systems. Rates for those exposed to 1 Sv are elevated about 10%, a relative increase that is considerably smaller than that for cancer. However, estimates of the number of radiation-related noncancer deaths in the cohort to date (140 to 280) are 50 to 100% of the number for solid cancer. The data do not yet clarify the shape of the dose response. There is no significant evidence against linearity, but the data are statistically consistent with curvilinear dose-response functions that posit essentially zero risk for doses below 0.5 Sv. Similarly, while the data are consistent with substantial variation in the excess relative risk with age at exposure or attained age, there is no statistically significant dependence on these factors. In view of the small relative risks and the lack of understanding of biological mechanisms, we emphasize consideration of whether the findings could be explained by misclassification, confounding or selection effects. Based on available data, we conclude that such factors are unlikely to fully explain the observed dose response. A significant dose response is also seen for deaths from blood diseases with an excess relative risk that is several times greater than that seen for solid cancer. Particular attention is paid to the possibility that this apparent effect is a consequence of the attribution of leukemia or other cancer deaths to noncancer blood diseases. We find that misclassification does not explain this excess risk. As in earlier reports, suicide rates tend to decrease with increasing dose.     

Powering popular conceptions: The !Kung in the Marshall family expedition films of the 1950s

The paper develops a theoretical framework for the study of ethnographic film out‐takes in relation to material that is included in released ethnographic film, in this case, the films by John Marshall on the Kalahari San. The significance of what is included in relation to that which is excluded is called the theory of structured absences. This theory is then applied to the study of the 700,000 feet of 16 mm out‐takes not used by Marshall in his released films on the Ju/'hoansi.

The difficulties of analysing archival film are discussed, and issues of representation in relation to exposed footage, released films, and the director's own theory of documentary, are critically examined. The anthropological significance of Marshall's filmic contribution on the Kalahari San is assessed.     

Making British cortisone: Glaxo and the development of corticosteroids in Britain in the 1950s-1960s

Following the announcement in 1949 in the USA that cortisone offered rheumatoid arthritis sufferers effective treatment for their crippling disease, the Ministry of Health came under considerable pressure from the medical profession and the public to make cortisone available in Britain. The Ministry, therefore, urged British companies to start manufacturing cortisone. Among the several pharmaceutical firms responding to the Ministry's request, Glaxo's expertise in the field of vitamins gave them a head start. This paper describes the varied and flexible strategy that enabled Glaxo to maintain this head start, and the scientific and technical capabilities which the company subsequently built up, enabling them to dominate the market for corticosteroids in Britain. Among the drugs to emerge out of the Glaxo project to manufacture cortisone, which began in 1950 and later became a wider R&D programme on steroids, was the topical steroid Betnovate, launched in 1963, which remains a best-seller today. However, although it led to successful new products, Glaxo's programme had limitations. The paper identifies a missed opportunity, in the shape of the biosynthetic route to steroid drugs, often considered as a milestone in the development of the new biotechnology. Whether or not this missed opportunity proved costly to the company is uncertain. However, it illustrates the role of technological path-dependence, and the importance of the integration between different scientific disciplines, in this case chemistry and biology, in pharmaceutical innovation.     

Memories of the 1950s at The New York Botanical Garden

Memories of The New York Botanical Garden during the 1950s are given.