Disparities in distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across US counties: A geographic information system–based cross-sectional study

BackgroundThe US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has repeatedly called for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine equity. The objective our study was to measure equity in the early distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to healthcare facilities across the US. Specifically, we tested whether the likelihood of a healthcare facility administering COVID-19 vaccines in May 2021 differed by county-level racial composition and degree of urbanicity.Methods and findingsThe outcome was whether an eligible vaccination facility actually administered COVID-19 vaccines as of May 2021, and was defined by spatially matching locations of eligible and actual COVID-19 vaccine administration locations. The outcome was regressed against county-level measures for racial/ethnic composition, urbanicity, income, social vulnerability index, COVID-19 mortality, 2020 election results, and availability of nontraditional vaccination locations using generalized estimating equations.Across the US, 61.4% of eligible healthcare facilities and 76.0% of eligible pharmacies provided COVID-19 vaccinations as of May 2021. Facilities in counties with >42.2% non-Hispanic Black population (i.e., > 95th county percentile of Black race composition) were less likely to serve as COVID-19 vaccine administration locations compared to facilities in counties with <12.5% non-Hispanic Black population (i.e., lower than US average), with OR 0.83; 95% CI, 0.70 to 0.98, p = 0.030. Location of a facility in a rural county (OR 0.82; 95% CI, 0.75 to 0.90, p < 0.001, versus metropolitan county) or in a county in the top quintile of COVID-19 mortality (OR 0.83; 95% CI, 0.75 to 0.93, p = 0.001, versus bottom 4 quintiles) was associated with decreased odds of serving as a COVID-19 vaccine administration location.There was a significant interaction of urbanicity and racial/ethnic composition: In metropolitan counties, facilities in counties with >42.2% non-Hispanic Black population (i.e., >95th county percentile of Black race composition) had 32% (95% CI 14% to 47%, p = 0.001) lower odds of serving as COVID administration facility compared to facilities in counties with below US average Black population. This association between Black composition and odds of a facility serving as vaccine administration facility was not observed in rural or suburban counties. In rural counties, facilities in counties with above US average Hispanic population had 26% (95% CI 11% to 38%, p = 0.002) lower odds of serving as vaccine administration facility compared to facilities in counties with below US average Hispanic population. This association between Hispanic ethnicity and odds of a facility serving as vaccine administration facility was not observed in metropolitan or suburban counties.Our analyses did not include nontraditional vaccination sites and are based on data as of May 2021, thus they represent the early distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. Our results based on this cross-sectional analysis may not be generalizable to later phases of the COVID-19 vaccine distribution process.ConclusionsHealthcare facilities in counties with higher Black composition, in rural areas, and in hardest-hit communities were less likely to serve as COVID-19 vaccine administration locations in May 2021. The lower uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations among minority populations and rural areas has been attributed to vaccine hesitancy; however, decreased access to vaccination sites may be an additional overlooked barrier.

Inmaculada Hernandez and colleagues investigate the disparities in early-phase distribution of COVID-19 Vaccines across U.S. Counties.     

Net effect of wort osmotic pressure on fermentation course, yeast vitality, beer flavor, and haze

The net effect of increased wort osmolarity on fermentation time, bottom yeast vitality and sedimentation, beer flavor compounds, and haze was determined in fermentations with 12° all-malt wort supplemented with sorbitol to reach osmolarity equal to 16° and 20°. Three pitchings were performed in 12°/12°/12°, 16°/16°/12°, and 20°/20°/12° worts. Fermentations in 16° and 20° worts decreased yeast vitality measured as acidification power (AP) by a maximum of 10%, lowered yeast proliferation, and increased fermentation time. Repitching aggravated these effects. The 3rd “back to normal” pitching into 12° wort restored the yeast AP and reproductive abilities while the extended fermentation time remained. Yeast sedimentation in 16° and 20° worts was delayed but increased about two times at fermentation end relative to that in 12° wort. Third “back-to-normal” pitching abolished the delay in sedimentation and reduced its extent, which became nearly equal in all variants. Beer brewed at increased osmolarity was characterized by increased levels of diacetyl and pentanedione and lower levels of dimethylsulfide and acetaldehyde. Esters and higher alcohols displayed small variations irrespective of wort osmolarity or repitching. Increased wort osmolarity had no appreciable effect on the haze of green beer and accelerated beer clarification during maturation. In all variants, chill haze increased with repitching.     

Evolutionary temperature compensation of carbon fixation in marine phytoplankton

The efficiency of carbon sequestration by the biological pump could decline in the coming decades because respiration tends to increase more with temperature than photosynthesis. Despite these differences in the short‐term temperature sensitivities of photosynthesis and respiration, it remains unknown whether the long‐term impacts of global warming on metabolic rates of phytoplankton can be modulated by evolutionary adaptation. We found that respiration was consistently more temperature dependent than photosynthesis across 18 diverse marine phytoplankton, resulting in universal declines in the rate of carbon fixation with short‐term increases in temperature. Long‐term experimental evolution under high temperature reversed the short‐term stimulation of metabolic rates, resulting in increased rates of carbon fixation. Our findings suggest that thermal adaptation may therefore have an ameliorating impact on the efficiency of phytoplankton as primary mediators of the biological carbon pump.     

Mixed company: a framework for understanding the composition and organization of mixed‐species animal groups

Mixed‐species animal groups (MSGs) are widely acknowledged to increase predator avoidance and foraging efficiency, among other benefits, and thereby increase participants' fitness. Diversity in MSG composition ranges from two to 70 species of very similar or completely different phenotypes. Yet consistency in organization is also observable in that one or a few species usually have disproportionate importance for MSG formation and/or maintenance. We propose a two‐dimensional framework for understanding this diversity and consistency, concentrating on the types of interactions possible between two individuals, usually of different species. One axis represents the similarity of benefit types traded between the individuals, while the second axis expresses asymmetry in the relative amount of benefits/costs accrued. Considering benefit types, one extreme represents the case of single‐species groups wherein all individuals obtain the same supplementary, group‐size‐related benefits, and the other extreme comprises associations of very different, but complementary species (e.g. one partner creates access to food while the other provides vigilance). The relevance of social information and the matching of activities (e.g. speed of movement) are highest for relationships on the supplementary side of this axis, but so is competition; relationships between species will occur at points along this gradient where the benefits outweigh the costs. Considering benefit amounts given or received, extreme asymmetry occurs when one species is exclusively a benefit provider and the other a benefit user. Within this parameter space, some MSG systems are constrained to one kind of interaction, such as shoals of fish of similar species or leader–follower interactions in fish and other taxa. Other MSGs, such as terrestrial bird flocks, can simultaneously include a variety of supplementary and complementary interactions. We review the benefits that species obtain across the diversity of MSG types, and argue that the degree and nature of asymmetry between benefit providers and users should be measured and not just assumed. We then discuss evolutionary shifts in MSG types, focusing on drivers towards similarity in group composition, and selection on benefit providers to enhance the benefits they can receive from other species. Finally, we conclude by considering how individual and collective behaviour in MSGs may influence both the structure and processes of communities.     

Revisiting the dimensionality of biological diversity

Biodiversity can be represented by different dimensions. While many diversity metrics try to capture the variation of these dimensions they also lead to a ‘fragmentation’ of the concept of biodiversity itself. Developing a unified measure that integrates all the dimensions of biodiversity is a theoretical solution for this problem, however, it remains operationally impossible. Alternatively, understanding which dimensions better represent the biodiversity of a set of communities can be a reliable way to integrate the different diversity metrics. Therefore, to achieve a holistic understand of biological diversity, we explore the concept of dimensionality. We define dimensionality of diversity as the number of complementary components of biodiversity, represented by diversity metrics, needed to describe biodiversity in an unambiguously and effective way. We provide a solution that joins two components of dimensionality – correlation and the variation – operationalized through two metrics, respectively: evenness of eigenvalues (EE) and importance values (IV). Through simulation we show that considering EE and IV together can provide information that is neglected when only EE is considered. We demonstrate how to apply this framework by investigating the dimensionality of South American small mammal communities. Our example evidenced that, for some representations of biological diversity, more attention is needed in the choice of diversity metrics necessary to effectively characterize biodiversity. We conclude by highlighting that this integrated framework provides a better understanding of dimensionality than considering only the correlation component.     

Palaeoecology and conservation of endangered hidden species; example of the liverwort Riella (Riellaceae)

Biodiversity and Conservation - Palaeoecology is increasingly contributing to conservation biology and restoration ecology by extending the recent annual to decennial records of ecological...     

Differentiation of the binding of two ligands to a tetrameric protein with a single symmetric active site by 19F NMR

R67 dihydrofolate reductase (R67 DHFR) is a plasmid‐encoded enzyme that confers resistance to the antibacterial drug trimethoprim. R67 DHFR is a tetramer with a single active site that is unusual as both cofactor and substrate are recognized by symmetry‐related residues. Such promiscuity has limited our previous efforts to differentiate ligand binding by NMR. To address this problem, we incorporated fluorine at positions 4, 5, 6, or 7 of the indole rings of tryptophans 38 and 45 and characterized the spectra to determine which probe was optimal for studying ligand binding. Two resonances were observed for all apo proteins. Unexpectedly, the W45 resonance appeared broad, and truncation of the disordered N‐termini resulted in the appearance of one sharp W45 resonance. These results are consistent with interaction of the N‐terminus with W45. Binding of the cofactor broadened W38 for all fluorine probes, whereas substrate, dihydrofolate, binding resulted in the appearance of three new resonances for 4‐ and 5‐fluoroindole labeled protein and severe line broadening for 6‐ and 7‐fluoroindole R67 DHFR. W45 became slightly broader upon ligand binding. With only two peaks in the ¹⁹F NMR spectra, our data were able to differentiate cofactor and substrate binding to the single, symmetric active site of R67 DHFR and yield binding affinities.