Current surgical procedures in pediatric urology

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An investigation of the pollution contribution of catchments surrounding the Knysna Estuary, with implications for stormwater management

The Knysna Estuary is ranked highest in South Africa for conservation importance and is a haven for endemic marine species. The ecosystem services provided by the estuary include significant biodiversity value and amenity value for residents and tourists. The economy of Knysna is reliant on tourism, which in turn is dependent on ecosystem services. The health of the Knysna Estuary is currently threatened by poor water quality. If the water pollution can be addressed, ecosystems can be protected and significant social and economic costs of environmental degradation can be avoided. The pollution contribution of runoff from catchments to the estuary is imperfectly understood. Mitigation measures designed based on imperfect knowledge may be inappropriate or fail to address the pollution concerns. A poor understanding of the world views of stakeholders could lead to the design of socially unacceptable solutions. This study aimed to improve knowledge of the catchments surrounding the estuary, and stakeholders within these areas, to inform solutions. Surface water sampling and testing and analysis of national and municipal databases were used to assess the pollutant contribution of catchment runoff. High nutrient concentrations were conducive to eutrophic or hypertrophic conditions at most sites. Total Inorganic Nitrogen (TIN) concentrations exceeded 5 mg/ℓ at 60% of the sites. Ammonium concentrations made up a disproportionate fraction of the TIN readings, with most fractions exceeding 20%, and many exceeding 70%. Student t tests indicated that TIN concentrations at the Bongani River were significantly higher than historical data. Total Suspended Solid (TSS) concentrations at some sites were lower than historical data. E. coli spikes of over 30,000 CFU/100 mℓ were measured at nine sites in October 2018. The Bongani River catchment was identified as a significant source of elevated nutrients and E. coli. Elevated nutrients and TSS were also recorded in the effluent from the Knysna Waste Water Treatment Works (WWTW) with mean values of 36 and 24 mg/ℓ for Total Ammonia Nitrogen (TAN) and TSS respectively. A Kendall correlation analysis indicated significant positive trends in TIN and TAN, and negative trends in Soluble Reactive Phosphorus. A hydrological model was built for the Bongani Catchment. Data input to the model was obtained from site visits, literature, and a desktop study of available catchment information. The model was calibrated against observed data at two water level monitoring points. The model was used to estimate pollutant loads for large storms, and can be used to inform possible pollution mitigation strategies. Further water management challenges and pollution sources were identified through stakeholder interviews. A decision support tool was used to understand how stakeholder world views and values can inform the selection of socially acceptable solutions. Stakeholder interviews identified sewage leaks as a water management concern. This corresponds well with the elevated nutrient and E. coli concentrations measured in many catchments. Other identified pollutants were litter and TSS

Convergence of signalling pathways in innate immune responses and genetic forms of Parkinson's disease

In recent years progress in molecular biology and genetics have advanced our understanding of neurological disorders and highlighted synergistic relationships with inflammatory and age-related processes. Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disorder that is characterized by loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc). Increasing extensive evidence supports the contribution of genetic risk variants and inflammation in the pathobiology of this disease. Functional and genetic studies demonstrate an overlap between genes linked to increased risk for PD and autoimmune diseases. Variants identified in loci adjacent to LRRK2, GBA, and HLA establish a crosstalk between the pathobiologies of the two disease spectra. Furthermore, common signalling pathways associated with the pathogenesis of genetic PD are also relevant to inflammatory signaling include MAPK, NF-κB, Wnt and inflammasome signaling. Importantly, post-mortem analyses of brain and cerebrospinal fluid from PD patients show the accumulation of proinflammatory cytokines. In this review we will focus on the principal mechanisms of genetic, inflammatory and age-related risk that intersect in the pathogenesis of PD

Seasonal patterns of oral antihistamine and intranasal corticosteroid purchases from Australian community pharmacies : a retrospective observational study

Acknowledgments The abstract of this paper was presented at the Respiratory Effectiveness Group 2016 Annual Summit as a poster presentation with interim findings. The poster’s abstract was published in “Poster Abstracts” in The Journal of Thoracic Disease (Vol. 8, Supplement 5, 5 July 2016). http://jtd.amegroups.com/article/view/8504.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Hsc70-induced changes in clathrin-auxilin cage structure suggest a role for clathrin light chains in cage disassembly

The molecular chaperone, Hsc70, together with its co-factor, auxilin, facilitates the ATP-dependent removal of clathrin during clathrin-mediated endocytosis in cells. We have used cryo-electron microscopy to determine the 3D structure of a complex of clathrin, auxilin401-910 and Hsc70 at pH 6 in the presence of ATP, frozen within 20 seconds of adding Hsc70 in order to visualize events that follow the binding of Hsc70 to clathrin and auxilin before clathrin disassembly. In this map, we observe density beneath the vertex of the cage that we attribute to bound Hsc70. This density emerges asymmetrically from the clathrin vertex, suggesting preferential binding by Hsc70 for one of the three possible sites at the vertex. Statistical comparison with a map of whole auxilin and clathrin previously published by us reveals the location of statistically significant differences which implicate involvement of clathrin light chains in structural rearrangements which occur after Hsc70 is recruited. Clathrin disassembly assays using light scattering suggest that loss of clathrin light chains reduces the efficiency with which auxilin facilitates this reaction. These data support a regulatory role for clathrin light chains in clathrin disassembly in addition to their established role in regulating clathrin assembly

Reservas de biomasa de árboles dispersos en potreros y mitigación al cambio climático.

El presente estudio tuvo como objetivo determinar la contribución de los árboles en potreros a la mitigación al cambio climático mediante la estimación de las reservas de carbono en Costa Rica y Nicaragua. Entre los años 2002 y 2003, 17 783 árboles fueron inventariados en potreros de 59 fincas ubicadas en zonas de bosque tropical seco, húmedo y seco con transición a húmedo. El valor promedio de las reservas de biomasa de los árboles en los potreros fue de 10,7±1,1 Mg/ha con un valor mínimo de 5,3±1 Mg/ha en Rivas y un máximo de 13,5±3,5 Mg/ha en Matiguás. Existe relación entre la biomasa arriba del suelo de los potreros con la densidad árboles y el área basal, lo que permitió desarrollar ecuaciones simples para predecir dichos cambios. El diseño de políticas que incentiven la conservación y manejo de árboles en potreros, será un aspecto clave a ser incorporado dentro de las estrategias de cambio climático de los países

Meaning and role of functional-organic distinction: a study of clinicians in psychiatry and neurology services

The functional-organic distinction attempts to differentiate disorders with diagnosable biological causes from those without and is a central axis on which diagnoses, medical specialities and services are organised. Previous studies report poor agreement between clinicians regarding the meanings of the terms and the conditions to which they apply, as well as noting value-laden implications of relevant diagnoses. Consequently, we aimed to understand how clinicians working in psychiatry and neurology services navigate the functional-organic distinction in their work. Twenty clinicians (10 physicians, 10 psychologists) working in psychiatry and neurology services participated in semistructured interviews that were analysed applying a constructivist grounded theory approach. The distinction was described as often incongruent with how clinicians conceptualise patients’ problems. Organic factors were considered to be objective, unambiguously identifiable and clearly causative, whereas functional causes were invisible and to be hypothesised through thinking and conversation. Contextual factors—including cultural assumptions, service demands, patient needs and colleagues’ views—were key in how the distinction was deployed in practice. The distinction was considered theoretically unsatisfactory, eventually to be superseded, but clinical decision making required it to be used strategically. These uses included helping communicate medical problems, navigating services, hiding meaning by making psychological explanations more palatable, tackling stigma, giving hope, and giving access to illness identity. Clinicians cited moral issues at both individual and societal levels as integral to the conceptual basis and deployment of the functional-organic distinction and described actively navigating these as part of their work. There was a considerable distance between the status of the functional-organic distinction as a sound theoretical concept generalisable across conditions and its role as a gatekeeping tool within the structures of healthcare. Ambiguity and contradictions were considered as both obstacles and benefits when deployed in practice and strategic considerations were important in deciding which to lean on

Spatiotemporal reconstruction and transmission dynamics during the 2016-17 H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza epidemic in Italy

Effective control of avian diseases in domestic populations requires understanding of the transmission dynamics facilitating viral emergence and spread. In 2016–17, Italy experienced a significant avian influenza epidemic caused by a highly pathogenic A(H5N8) virus, which affected domestic premises housing around 2.7 million birds, primarily in the north‐eastern regions with the highest density of poultry farms (Lombardy, Emilia‐Romagna and Veneto). We perform integrated analyses of genetic, spatiotemporal and host data within a Bayesian phylogenetic framework. Using continuous and discrete phylogeography, we estimate the locations of movements responsible for the spread and persistence of the epidemic. The information derived from these analyses on rates of transmission between regions through time can be used to assess the success of control measures. Using an approach based on phylogenetic–temporal distances between domestic cases, we infer the presence of cryptic wild bird‐mediated transmission, information that can be used to complement existing epidemiological methods for distinguishing transmission within the domestic population from incursions across the wildlife–domestic interface, a common challenge in veterinary epidemiology. Spatiotemporal reconstruction of the epidemic reveals a highly skewed distribution of virus movements with a high proportion of shorter distance local movements interspersed with occasional long‐distance dispersal events associated with wild birds. We also show how such inference be used to identify possible instances of human‐mediated movements where distances between phylogenetically linked domestic cases are unusually high

Ariel - Volume 4 Number 3

Editors David A. Jacoby Eugenia Miller Tom Williams Associate Editors Paul Bialas Terry Burt Michael Leo Gail Tenikat Editor Emeritus and Business Manager Richard J. Bonnano Movie Editor Robert Breckenridge Staff Richard Blutstein Mary F. Buechler Steve Glinks Len Grasman Alice M. Johnson J.D. Kanofsky Tom Lehman Dave Mayer Bernie Odd