Long term geological record of a global deep subsurface microbial habitat in sand injection complexes

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Cohort Profile: The Green and Blue Spaces (GBS) and mental health in Wales e-cohort

This is the final version. Available on open access from Oxford University Press via the DOI in this recordData availability: This cohort is stored and maintained in the SAIL Databank at Swansea University, Swansea, UK. This is a controlled access cohort; all proposals to use SAIL data are subject to review by an independent Information Governance Review Panel. Where access is granted, it is gained through a privacy protecting safe haven and remote access system (SAIL Gateway). The cohort data will be available to external researchers for collaborative research projects after 2022. For further details about accessing the cohort, contact [saildatabank.com] and Sarah Rodgers [[email protected]] for opportunities to collaborate with the original investigator team.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)UK Prevention Research Partnership, GroundsWel

The Distances of the Magellanic Clouds

The present status of our knowledge of the distances to the Magellanic Clouds is evaluated from a post-Hipparcos perspective. After a brief summary of the effects of structure, reddening, age and metallicity, the primary distance indicators for the Large Magellanic Cloud are reviewed: The SN 1987A ring, Cepheids, RR Lyraes, Mira variables, and Eclipsing Binaries. Distances derived via these methods are weighted and combined to produce final "best" estimates for the Magellanic Clouds distance moduli.Comment: Invited review article to appear in ``Post Hipparcos Cosmic Candles'', F. Caputo & A. Heck (Eds.), Kluwer Academic Publ., Dordrecht, in pres

Visiting nature is associated with lower socioeconomic inequalities in well-being in Wales.

This is the final version. Available from Nature Research via the DOI in this record. Data availability: The data used in this study were accessed through the SAIL Databank at Swansea University, Swansea, UK. All proposals to use SAIL data are subject to review by an independent Information Governance Review Panel (IGRP). Information on the application process can be found at: https://www.saildatabank.com/applicationprocess.Natural environments can promote well-being through multiple mechanisms. Many studies have investigated relationships between residential green/blue space (GBS) and well-being, fewer explore relationships with actual use of GBS. We used a nationally representative survey, the National Survey for Wales, anonymously linked with spatial GBS data to investigate associations of well-being with both residential GBS and time in nature (N = 7631). Both residential GBS and time spent in nature were associated with subjective well-being. Higher green-ness was associated with lower well-being, counter to hypotheses (predicting the Warwick and Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (WEMWBS): Enhanced vegetation index β =  - 1.84, 95% confidence interval (CI) - 3.63, - 0.05) but time spent in nature was associated with higher well-being (four hours a week in nature vs. none β = 3.57, 95% CI 3.02, 4.13). There was no clear association between nearest GBS proximity and well-being. In support of the equigenesis theory, time spent in nature was associated with smaller socioeconomic inequalities in well-being. The difference in WEMWBS (possible range 14-70) between those who did and did not live in material deprivation was 7.7 points for those spending no time in nature, and less at 4.5 points for those spending time in nature up to 1 h per week. Facilitating access and making it easier for people to spend time in nature may be one way to reduce socioeconomic inequalities in well-being.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)UK Prevention Research Partnership, GroundsWel

The use of Enhanced Vegetation Index for assessing access to different types of green space in epidemiological studies

This is the final version. Available on open access from Springer Nature via the DOI in this recordData availability: The data used in this study were generated and stored in the Geographic Information Science Secure e-Research Platform (GIS SeRP) research platform at Swansea University, Swansea, UK. All proposals to use data from the GIS SeRP are subject to review by an independent Information Governance Review Panel (IGRP). Information on the application process can be found at: https://www.saildatabank.com/application-process.BACKGROUND: Exposure to green space can protect against poor health through a variety of mechanisms. However, there is heterogeneity in methodological approaches to exposure assessments which makes creating effective policy recommendations challenging. OBJECTIVE: Critically evaluate the use of a satellite-derived exposure metric, the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), for assessing access to different types of green space in epidemiological studies. METHODS: We used Landsat 5-8 (30 m resolution) to calculate average EVI for a 300 m radius surrounding 1.4 million households in Wales, UK for 2018. We calculated two additional measures using topographic vector data to represent access to green spaces within 300 m of household locations. The two topographic vector-based measures were total green space area stratified by type and average private garden size. We used linear regression models to test whether EVI could discriminate between publicly accessible and private green space and Pearson correlation to test associations between EVI and green space types. RESULTS: Mean EVI for a 300 m radius surrounding households in Wales was 0.28 (IQR = 0.12). Total green space area and average private garden size were significantly positively associated with corresponding EVI measures (β = < 0.0001, 95% CI: 0.0000, 0.0000; β = 0.0001, 95% CI: 0.0001, 0.0001 respectively). In urban areas, as average garden size increases by 1 m2, EVI increases by 0.0002. Therefore, in urban areas, to see a 0.1 unit increase in EVI index score, garden size would need to increase by 500 m2. The very small β values represent no 'measurable real-world' associations. When stratified by type, we observed no strong associations between greenspace and EVI. IMPACT: It is a widely implemented assumption in epidiological studies that an increase in EVI is equivalent to an increase in greenness and/or green space. We used linear regression models to test associations between EVI and potential sources of green reflectance at a neighbourhood level using satellite imagery from 2018. We compared EVI measures with a 'gold standard' vector-based dataset that defines publicly accessible and private green spaces. We found that EVI should be interpreted with care as a greater EVI score does not necessarily mean greater access to publicly available green spaces in the hyperlocal environment.National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR

Green–blue space exposure changes and impact on individual-level well-being and mental health: a population-wide dynamic longitudinal panel study with linked survey data

This is the final version. Available on open access from NIHR Journals Library via the DOI in this recordBackground Cross-sectional evidence suggests that living near green and blue spaces benefits mental health; longitudinal evidence is limited. Objectives To quantify the impact of changes in green and blue spaces on common mental health disorders, well-being and health service use. Design A retrospective, dynamic longitudinal panel study. Setting Wales, UK. Participants An e-cohort comprising 99,682,902 observations of 2,801,483 adults (≥ 16 years) registered with a general practice in Wales (2008–2019). A 5312-strong ‘National Survey for Wales (NSW) subgroup’ was surveyed on well-being and visits to green and blue spaces. Main outcome measures Common mental health disorders, general practice records; subjective well-being, Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale. Data sources Common mental health disorder and use of general practice services were extracted quarterly from the Welsh Longitudinal General Practice Dataset. Annual ambient greenness exposure, enhanced vegetation index and access to green and blue spaces (2018) from planning and satellite data. Data were linked within the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage Databank. Methods Multilevel regression models examined associations between exposure to green and blue spaces and common mental health disorders and use of general practice. For the National Survey for Wales subgroup, generalised linear models examined associations between exposure to green and blue spaces and subjective well-being and common mental health disorders. Results and conclusions Our longitudinal analyses found no evidence that changes in green and blue spaces through time impacted on common mental health disorders. However, time-aggregated exposure to green and blue spaces contrasting differences between people were associated with subsequent common mental health disorders. Similarly, our cross-sectional findings add to growing evidence that residential green and blue spaces and visits are associated with well-being benefits: Greater ambient greenness (+ 1 enhanced vegetation index) was associated with lower likelihood of subsequently seeking care for a common mental health disorder [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 0.80, 95% confidence interval, (CI) 0.80 to 0.81] and with well-being with a U-shaped relationship [Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale; enhanced vegetation index beta (adjusted) –10.15, 95% CI –17.13 to −3.17; EVI2 beta (quadratic term; adj.) 12.49, 95% CI 3.02 to 21.97]. Those who used green and blue spaces for leisure reported better well-being, with diminishing extra benefit with increasing time (Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale: time outdoors (hours) beta 0.88, 95% CI 0.53 to 1.24, time outdoors2 beta −0.06, 95% CI −0.11 to −0.01) and had 4% lower odds of seeking help for common mental health disorders (AOR 0.96, 95% CI 0.93 to 0.99). Those in urban areas benefited most from greater access to green and blue spaces (AOR 0.89, 95% CI 0.89 to 0.89). Those in material deprivation benefited most from leisure time outdoors (until approximately four hours per week; Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale: time outdoors × in material deprivation: 1.41, 95% CI 0.39 to 2.43; time outdoors2 × in material deprivation −0.18, 95% CI −0.33 to −0.04) although well-being remained generally lower. Limitations Longitudinal analyses were restricted by high baseline levels and limited temporal variation in ambient greenness in Wales. Changes in access to green and blue spaces could not be captured annually due to technical issues with national-level planning datasets. Future work Further analyses could investigate mental health impacts in population subgroups potentially most sensitive to local changes in access to specific types of green and blue spaces. Deriving green and blue spaces changes from planning data is needed to overcome temporal uncertainties.National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR

Ambient greenness, access to local green spaces, and subsequent mental health: a 10-year longitudinal dynamic panel study of 2·3 million adults in Wales.

This is the final version. Available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record. Data sharing: The data for this cohort are stored and maintained in the SAIL Databank at Swansea University. This is a controlled access cohort; all proposals to use SAIL data are subject to review by an independent information governance review panel. Where access is granted, it is gained through a privacy-protecting safe haven and remote access system (SAIL Gateway). The cohort data will be available for collaborative research projects after 2023. For further details about accessing the cohort, contact saildatabank.com or Sarah E Rodgers ([email protected]) to discuss working with the original cohort developers.BACKGROUND: Living in greener areas, or close to green and blue spaces (GBS; eg, parks, lakes, or beaches), is associated with better mental health, but longitudinal evidence when GBS exposures precede outcomes is less available. We aimed to analyse the effect of living in or moving to areas with more green space or better access to GBS on subsequent adult mental health over time, while explicitly considering health inequalities. METHODS: A cohort of the people in Wales, UK (≥16 years; n=2 341 591) was constructed from electronic health record data sources from Jan 1, 2008 to Oct 31, 2019, comprising 19 141 896 person-years of follow-up. Household ambient greenness (Enhanced Vegetation Index [EVI]), access to GBS (counts, distance to nearest), and common mental health disorders (CMD, based on a validated algorithm combining current diagnoses or symptoms of anxiety or depression [treated or untreated in the preceding 1-year period], or treatment of historical diagnoses from before the current cohort [up to 8 years previously, to 2000], where diagnosis preceded treatment) were record-linked. Cumulative exposure values were created for each adult, censoring for CMD, migration out of Wales, death, or end of cohort. Exposure and CMD associations were evaluated using multivariate logistic regression, stratified by area-level deprivation. FINDINGS: After adjustment, exposure to greater ambient greenness over time (+0·1 increased EVI on a 0-1 scale) was associated with lower odds of subsequent CMD (adjusted odds ratio 0·80, 95% CI 0·80-0·81), where CMD was based on a combination of current diagnoses or symptoms (treated or untreated in the preceding 1-year period), or treatments. Ten percentile points more access to GBS was associated with lower odds of a later CMD (0·93, 0·93-0·93). Every additional 360 m to the nearest GBS was associated with higher odds of CMD (1·05, 1·04-1·05). We found that positive effects of GBS on mental health appeared to be greater in more deprived quintiles. INTERPRETATION: Ambient exposure is associated with the greatest reduced risk of CMD, particularly for those who live in deprived communities. These findings support authorities responsible for GBS, who are attempting to engage planners and policy makers, to ensure GBS meets residents' needs. FUNDING: National Institute for Health and Care Research Public Health Research programme.National Institute for Health Researc

Linkage Mapping of Stem Saccharification Digestibility in Rice

Rice is the staple food of almost half of the world population, and in excess 90% of it is grown and consumed in Asia, but the disposal of rice straw poses a problem for farmers, who often burn it in the fields, causing health and environmental problems. However, with increased focus on the development of sustainable biofuel production, rice straw has been recognized as a potential feedstock for non-food derived biofuel production. Currently, the commercial realization of rice as a biofuel feedstock is constrained by the high cost of industrial saccharification processes needed to release sugar for fermentation. This study is focused on the alteration of lignin content, and cell wall chemotypes and structures, and their effects on the saccharification potential of rice lignocellulosic biomass. A recombinant inbred lines (RILs) population derived from a cross between the lowland rice variety IR1552 and the upland rice variety Azucena with 271 molecular markers for quantitative trait SNP (QTS) analyses was used. After association analysis of 271 markers for saccharification potential, 1 locus and 4 pairs of epistatic loci were found to contribute to the enzymatic digestibility phenotype, and an inverse relationship between reducing sugar and lignin content in these recombinant inbred lines was identified. As a result of QTS analyses, several cell-wall associated candidate genes are proposed that may be useful for marker-assisted breeding and may aid breeders to produce potential high saccharification rice varieties

Eenzaamheid en zelfmanagementvaardigheden bij visueel beperkte ouderen

 0,001). De multivariate hiërarchische regressieanalyse toont aan dat de zelfmanagementvaardigheid self-efficacy, partner status en zelfwaardering samenhangen met eenzaamheid. Visus-gerelateerde variabelen, zoals de ernst en de duur van de visuele beperking, zijn niet geassocieerd met eenzaamheid. Discussie. Visueel beperkte ouderen zijn een risicogroep als het gaat om eenzaamheid. De samenhang met zelfmanagementvaardigheden biedt mogelijkheden aangezien deze vaardigheden aangeleerd kunnen worden en daarmee eenzaamheidsgevoelens bij visueel beperkte ouderen kunnen verminderen. Een aangepaste versie van dit paper is verschenen in Journal of Aging and Health, doi:10.1177/0898264311399758