Norovirus infections in children under 5 years of age hospitalized due to the acute viral gastroenteritis in northeastern Poland

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency and seasonality of norovirus infection in hospitalized Polish children under 5 years of age, and a secondary aim was to compare the clinical severity of norovirus and rotavirus disease. The prospective surveillance study was carried out from July 2009 through June 2010. Stool samples from 242 children hospitalized due to acute viral gastroenteritis were tested for rotavirus group A and adenovirus with commercial immunochromatographic test and for norovirus with EIA assay. Single norovirus infection was found in 35/242 (14.5%) patients and in a further 5 (2.1%) children as co-infection with rotavirus. Overall, norovirus was detected in 16.5% of stool specimens. Norovirus infections tended to peak from October to November and again from February to March. In autumn months and in February, the proportion of norovirus gastroenteritis cases was equal or even surpassed those of rotavirus origin. Both norovirus and rotavirus infections most commonly affected children between 12 and 23 months of age. The low-grade or no fever was significantly more common in children infected with norovirus (94.3%) compared to rotavirus cases (52.9%). Overall, norovirus gastroenteritis was less severe than rotavirus disease with regard to 20-point severity scale (p < 0.05). Noroviruses have emerged as a relevant cause of acute gastroenteritis in Polish children. There is a great need for introducing routine norovirus testing of hospitalized children with gastroenteritis

Cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in Polish freshwater bodies.

In this work, the authors examined the presence of cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in 21 samples collected from fresh water bodies located in 5 provinces in Poland: Lublin (2), Podlasie (1), Pomerania (6), Warmia-Masuria (1) and Wielkopolska (11). In addition, to determine the general pattern of geographical distribution, frequency of cyanobacteria occurrence, and cyanotoxins production, the published data from 238 fresh water bodies in Poland were reviewed. On the basis of these collected results, we concluded that Planktothrix, Aphanizomenon, Microcystis and Dolichospermum were dominant. The general pattern in geographical distribution of the identified cyanobacterial genera was typical of other eutrophic waters in Europe. The production of cyanotoxins was revealed in 18 (86%) of the 21 samples analyzed in the present work and in 74 (75%) of the 98 total water bodies for which the presence of toxins had been examined. Among the 24 detected microcystin variants, [Asp3]MC-RR was most common. These results can be verified when more data from the less explored water bodies in the southern and eastern parts of Poland are available.The authors would like to acknowledge the European Cooperation in Science and Technology, COST Action ES 1105 "CYANOCOST- Cyanobacterial blooms and toxins in water resources: Occurrence, impacts and management" for adding value to this study through networking and knowledge sharing with European experts and researchers in the field.42435837

Data Descriptor : A European Multi Lake Survey dataset of environmental variables, phytoplankton pigments and cyanotoxins

Under ongoing climate change and increasing anthropogenic activity, which continuously challenge ecosystem resilience, an in-depth understanding of ecological processes is urgently needed. Lakes, as providers of numerous ecosystem services, face multiple stressors that threaten their functioning. Harmful cyanobacterial blooms are a persistent problem resulting from nutrient pollution and climate-change induced stressors, like poor transparency, increased water temperature and enhanced stratification. Consistency in data collection and analysis methods is necessary to achieve fully comparable datasets and for statistical validity, avoiding issues linked to disparate data sources. The European Multi Lake Survey (EMLS) in summer 2015 was an initiative among scientists from 27 countries to collect and analyse lake physical, chemical and biological variables in a fully standardized manner. This database includes in-situ lake variables along with nutrient, pigment and cyanotoxin data of 369 lakes in Europe, which were centrally analysed in dedicated laboratories. Publishing the EMLS methods and dataset might inspire similar initiatives to study across large geographic areas that will contribute to better understanding lake responses in a changing environment.Peer reviewe

Stratification strength and light climate explain variation in chlorophyll a at the continental scale in a European multilake survey in a heatwave summer

To determine the drivers of phytoplankton biomass, we collected standardized morphometric, physical, and biological data in 230 lakes across the Mediterranean, Continental, and Boreal climatic zones of the European continent. Multilinear regression models tested on this snapshot of mostly eutrophic lakes (median total phosphorus [TP] = 0.06 and total nitrogen [TN] = 0.7 mg L−1), and its subsets (2 depth types and 3 climatic zones), show that light climate and stratification strength were the most significant explanatory variables for chlorophyll a (Chl a) variance. TN was a significant predictor for phytoplankton biomass for shallow and continental lakes, while TP never appeared as an explanatory variable, suggesting that under high TP, light, which partially controls stratification strength, becomes limiting for phytoplankton development. Mediterranean lakes were the warmest yet most weakly stratified and had significantly less Chl a than Boreal lakes, where the temperature anomaly from the long-term average, during a summer heatwave was the highest (+4°C) and showed a significant, exponential relationship with stratification strength. This European survey represents a summer snapshot of phytoplankton biomass and its drivers, and lends support that light and stratification metrics, which are both affected by climate change, are better predictors for phytoplankton biomass in nutrient-rich lakes than nutrient concentrations and surface temperature

CSR activities in the retailers’ strategies

Artykuł ma na celu zaprezentowanie przeglądu literatury pod względem stosowanych przez sieci detaliczne działań z zakresu społecznej odpowiedzialności biznesu (CSR). Wzrost znaczenia CSR jest coraz bardziej widoczny w sektorze detalicznym. Z czterech głównych obszarów CSR, jakimi jest środowisko, rynek, miejsce pracy i społeczeństwo, wywieranie jak najmniejszego wpływu na środowisko naturalne jest kluczowym dla detalistów. Sieci detaliczne coraz większą uwagę poświęcają również postrzeganiu własnych marek jako odpowiedzialnych i zgodnych z zasadami zrównoważonego rozwoju.The goal of this study is to present an in-depth literature study on retailers’ activities in the field of corporate social responsibility(CSR). The growing importance of CSR is increasingly evident in the retail sector. Of the four main areas of CSR (which are: the environment, marketplace, workplace and society) exerting the lowest possible impact on the environment is crucial for retailers. Retailers devote increasing attention to the perception of their own brands as responsible and consistent with the principles of sustainable development

Phytoplankton as a basic nutritional source in diets of fish

This article focuses on the biochemical composition and the role of phytoplankton (primary producer) as a basic nutritional source in diets of fish. In general, an aquatic classical food web comprises phytoplankton, zooplankton and fish (planktivorous and predatory ones) as predominant elements, which in turn define the linear direction of an energy-flow pathway and nutritional transfer. Phytoplankton provides many valuable phytonutrients and biologically active ingredients, especially fatty acids, amino acids, sterols, organic minerals, enzymes, carotenoids, chlorophyll, trace elements, and vitamins, which are directly available for the first larval/juvenile stages of fish or indirectly (through trophic chains) for the more mature forms. Regarding the biochemical composition of phytoplankton, the most nutritional ones are lipids, which affect the growth, health and reproduction of aquatic animals, especially fish species. In general, the freshwater and marine chlorophytes and cryptophytes, and marine diatoms provide more polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA>SAFA>MUFA) than other groups, differently to fatty acids supplied by freshwater cyanobacteria (SAFA>MUFA>PUFA). Furthermore, cryptophytes have the highest n-3:n-6 ratio. A similarly high ratio is recorded in fatty acid composition of marine zooplankton with predominant PUFA. Addition of phytoplankton (e.g. Isochrysis galbana, Tetraselmis chui and Nannochloropsis oculata) to the process of fish larval rearing shows to improve the digestive functions at the pancreatic and intestinal levels. The most essential fatty acids for all fish are EPA and DHA, and the most popular fish species containing 4.08-11.84 mg g-1 of dry weight of EPA and DHA, as the sum, can be given in following order: Anguila anguila>Rutilus rutilus>Cyprinus carpio>Esox lucius>Blicca bjoerkna>Perca fluviatilis>Abramis brama>Sander lucioperca>Tinca tinca>Carassius carassius

Ramy kooperacji i kooperencji między producentami a detalistami: perspektywa sześciu producentów dóbr konsumpcyjnych trwałego użytku

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework of cooperation and co-opetition between manufacturers and retailers based on a theoretical review and a verification set from six case studies of consumer durables manufacturers. The approach takes the form of six in-depth case studies, which involved relationships (including cooperation and co-opetition) between six medium and large durables manufacturers and their retailers on the Polish market.Celem artykułu jest identyfikacja ram kooperacji i kooperencji między producentami a detalistami na podstawie przeglądu literatury oraz weryfikacji sześciu przypadków producentów dóbr konsumpcyjnych trwałego użytku. Analizy przypadków opracowano na podstawie wywiadów pogłębionych dotyczących relacji (w tym kooperacji i kooperencji) między sześcioma średnimi i dużymi producentami dóbr konsumpcyjnych trwałego użytku oraz ich kluczowymi pośrednikami detalicznymi na polskim rynku

Environmental competitiveness of regions

The quality of the environment plays a significant role in supporting regional development. Whenever a region is viewed as the space it occupies, a clean environment is one of the fundamental conditions of the region’s competitiveness, including its environmental advantage. The environmental competitivenss can be analysed in terms of the natural conditions ocurring in a given region as well as their skillful transformation into social and economic effects, which will contribute to a more rapid development of this region. The main purpose of this study has been to identify the level of competitivenss and environmental competitiveness of regions (Polish provinces) by calculating values of the Perkal index, and to determine the correlation coefficients for the competitiveness and environmental competitiveness between the regions. The provinces in Poland distinguished by a positive and high value of the Perkal index are: mazowieckie, śląskie, wielkopolskie, followed subsequently by małopolskie, dolnośląskie and pomorskie. The regions which possess the highest environmental competitive advantage are: lubuskie, pomorskie, zachodniopomorskie and warmińsko-mazurskie. Negative correlation was determined between the indicators of competitiveness and environmental competitivenss achieved in our study. However, it is a weak correlation. Thus, there is no ground to worry that the economic development will lead to some considerable deterioration of the natural environment. On the contrary, positive effects of the growth in economy on the natural surroundings should not be neglected