A standardised sampling protocol for robust assessment of reach-scale fish community diversity in wadeable New Zealand streams

The New Zealand fish fauna contains species that are affected not only by river system connectivity, but also by catchment and local-scale changes in landcover, water quality and habitat quality. Consequently, native fish have potential as multi-scale bioindicators of human pressure on stream ecosystems, yet no standardised, repeatable and scientifically defensible methods currently exist for effectively quantifying their abundance or diversity in New Zealand stream reaches. Here we report on the testing of a back-pack electrofishing method, modified from that used by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, on a wide variety of wadeable stream reaches throughout New Zealand. Seventy-three first- to third-order stream reaches were fished with a single pass over 150-345 m length. Time taken to sample a reach using single-pass electrofishing ranged from 1-8 h. Species accumulation curves indicated that, irrespective of location, continuous sampling of 150 stream metres is required to accurately describe reach-scale fish species richness using this approach. Additional species detection beyond 150 m was rare (<10%) with a single additional species detected at only two out of the 17 reaches sampled beyond this distance. A positive relationship was also evident between species detection and area fished, although stream length rather than area appeared to be the better predictor. The method tested provides a standardised and repeatable approach for regional and/or national reporting on the state of New Zealand's freshwater fish communities and trends in richness and abundance over time

On the type Ia supernovae 2007on and 2011iv: Evidence for Chandrasekhar-mass explosions at the faint end of the luminosity-width relationship

Radiative transfer models of two transitional type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) have been produced using the abundance stratification technique. These two objects - designated SN 2007on and SN 2011iv - both exploded in the same galaxy, NGC1404, which allows for a direct comparison. SN 2007on synthesized 0.25M⊙of56Ni and was less luminous than SN 2011iv, which produced 0.31M⊙of56Ni. SN2007on had a lower central density (ρc) and higher explosion energy (Ekin~1.3 ± 0.3 × 1051erg) than SN 2011iv, and it produced less nuclear statistical equilibrium (NSE) elements (0.06M⊙). Whereas, SN2011iv had a larger ρc, which increased the electron capture rate in the lowest velocity regions, and produced 0.35M⊙of stable NSE elements. SN 2011iv had an explosion energy of ~Ekin~0.9 ± 0.2 × 1051erg. Both objects had an ejecta mass consistent with the Chandrasekhar mass (Ch-mass), and their observational properties are well described by predictions from delayed-detonation explosion models. Within this framework, comparison to the sub-luminous SN 1986G indicates SN 2011iv and SN 1986G have different transition densities (ρtr) but similar ρc. Whereas SN 1986G and SN 2007on had a similar ρtrbut different ρc. Finally, we examine the colour-stretch parameter sBVversus Lmaxrelation and determine that the bulk of SNe Ia (including the sub-luminous ones) are consistent with Ch-mass delayed-detonation explosions, where the main parameter driving the diversity is ρtr. We also find ρcto be driving the second-order scatter observed at the faint end of the luminosity-width relationship. © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society

Enteric Neurospheres Are Not Specific to Neural Crest Cultures: Implications for Neural Stem Cell Therapies

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited

Simulation of freshwater transport network and salt flux in the Bangladesh delta

Circulation of saline water is important for maintaining water quality in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) delta because of its vulnerability to the threat of climate change. We applied a numerical model to examine the volume and salt transports within the GBM delta, Bangladesh. To understand the components of salt water intrusion driven by tidal and subtidal (residual) transports, we selected 19 cross-sections to represent the complex delta circulation in a simplified network model. Our results show that over 82.51% of GBM river water drains through the eastern estuarine system (EES) in the wet season, increasing to 98.37% in the dry season. Residual transport can be comparable in size with the tidal transport in the wet season, and one order of magnitude smaller in the dry season. The western estuarine system (WES) experiences serious salinity intrusion in the dry season, and strong seasonal variability in both tidal and subtidal transport, with suppression of tide-driven transport observed during the wet season. Our results show the sub-channels area of the Lower Meghna River also faces the risk from salinity intrusion issues, as stronger tidal salt flux is estimated in the dry season. Tidal volume transport varies seasonally, corresponding to the variability of river discharge. A simplified solution by means of polynomial expansion was applied to describe the tidal propagation within river channels. Inland penetration of tidal energy is reduced with large river discharge, and additionally the propagation speed of the tidal wave increases in the wet season. Our analysis helps understand the response of the three estuarine systems to seasonal and tidal controls, and can be used to inform river management about the upstream-downstream linkages

Health insurance, neighborhood income, and emergency department usage by Utah children 1996–1998

BACKGROUND: It is estimated that approximately half of emergency department (ED) usage in the U.S. and other developed countries is for non-urgent conditions and that this usage is related to availability, social, and economic factors. We examined pediatric ED usage in a U.S. state with respect to income, health insurance status, types of medical conditions, and whether introduction of managed care affected utilization by Medicaid children. METHODS: Emergency department usage rates were calculated from 1996 through 1998 using Utah ED data for children with commercial health insurance, Medicaid, for uninsured children, and by income group estimating neighborhood household income from Zip code of residence. We analyzed usage following the July 1996 transition of Utah Medicaid to managed care. RESULTS: Children with Medicaid had approximately 50% greater ED utilization rates than children with commercial health insurance or uninsured children. The majority of usage for Medicaid and uninsured children was for non-traumatic conditions. Only 35% of total ED usage was for non-emergent or non-urgent conditions and this was related to both Medicaid and low household income. Children lacking health insurance were more likely to be discharged against medical advice (OR = 2.36, 95% C.I. 1.88–2.96). There was no reduction in Medicaid ED usage following the transition to managed care. CONCLUSION: Usage of ED services is related to both health insurance status and income. Children lacking health insurance and Medicaid children have excessive usage for conditions which could be treated in a primary care setting. That managed care does not reduce Medicaid ED usage is consistent with findings of other studies

Analysis of anti-RNA polymerase III antibody positive systemic sclerosis suggests altered GPATCH2L and CTNND2 expression in scleroderma renal crisis

OBJECTIVE: Scleroderma renal crisis (SRC) is a life-threatening complication of systemic sclerosis (SSc) strongly associated with anti RNA polymerase III antibody (ARA) autoantibodies. We explore genetic susceptibility and altered protein expression in renal biopsy specimens in ARA positive SRC. METHODS: ARA-positive patients (n=99) with at least 5 years' follow-up (49% with a history of SRC) were selected from a well-characterised SSc cohort (n=2254). Cases were genotyped using the Illumina Human Omni-express chip. Based on initial regression analysis, nine SNPs were chosen for validation in a separate cohort of 256 ARA+ patients (40 with SRC). Immunostaining of tissue sections from SRC or control kidney was used to quantify expression of candidate proteins based upon genetic analysis of the discovery cohort. RESULTS: Analysis of 641,489 SNPs suggested association of POU2F1 (rs2093658; 1.98x10-5), CTNND2 (rs1859082; p=7.14 x 10-5), HECW2 (rs16849716; p=1.2 x 10-4) and GPATCH2L (rs935332; p=4.92 x 10-5) with SRC. Furthermore, the validation cohort showed an association between rs935332 within the GPATCH2L region, with SRC (p=0.025). Immunostaining of renal biopsy sections showed increased tubular expression of GPATCH2L (p=0.026), and glomerular expression of CTNND2 (p=0.026) in SRC samples (n=8) compared with normal human kidney controls (n=8), despite absence of any genetic replication for the associated SNP. CONCLUSION: Increased expression of two candidate proteins GPATCH2L and CTNND2 in SRC compared with control kidney suggests a potential role in pathogenesis of SRC. For GPATCH2L this may reflect genetic susceptibility in ARA positive SSc based upon 2 independent cohorts

Evaluation of rK39 rapid diagnostic tests for canine visceral leishmaniasis : longitudinal study and meta-analysis

Canine visceral leishmaniasis is a vector-borne disease caused by the intracellular parasite Leishmania infantum. It is an important veterinary disease, and dogs are also the main animal reservoir for human infection. The disease is widespread in the Mediterranean area, and parts of Asia and South and Central America, and is potentially fatal in both dogs and humans unless treated. Diagnosis of canine infections requires serological or molecular tests. Detection of infection in dogs is important prior to treatment, and in epidemiological studies and control programmes, and a sensitive and specific rapid diagnostic test would be very useful. Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) have been developed, but their diagnostic performance has been reported to be variable. We evaluated the sensitivity of a RDT based on serological detection of the rK39 antigen in a cohort of naturally infected Brazilian dogs. The sensitivity of the test to detect infection was relatively low, but increased with time since infection and the severity of infection. We then carried out a meta-analysis of published studies of rK39 RDTs, evaluating the sensitivity to detect disease and infection. The results suggest that rK39 RDTs may be useful in a veterinary clinical setting, but the sensitivity to detect infection is too low for operational control programmes

SARS-CoV-2 infections in migrants and the role of household overcrowding: a causal mediation analysis of Virus Watch data

BACKGROUND: Migrants are over-represented in SARS-CoV-2 infections globally; however, evidence is limited for migrants in England and Wales. Household overcrowding is a risk factor for SARS-CoV-2 infection, with migrants more likely to live in overcrowded households than UK-born individuals. We aimed to estimate the total effect of migration status on SARS-CoV-2 infection and to what extent household overcrowding mediated this effect. METHODS: We included a subcohort of individuals from the Virus Watch prospective cohort study during the second SARS-CoV-2 wave (1 September 2020-30 April 2021) who were aged ≥18 years, self-reported the number of rooms in their household and had no evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection pre-September 2020. We estimated total, indirect and direct effects using Buis' logistic decomposition regression controlling for age, sex, ethnicity, clinical vulnerability, occupation, income and whether they lived with children. RESULTS: In total, 23 478 individuals were included. 9.07% (187/2062) of migrants had evidence of infection during the study period vs 6.27% (1342/21 416) of UK-born individuals. Migrants had 22% higher odds of infection during the second wave (total effect; OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.47). Household overcrowding accounted for approximately 36% (95% CI -4% to 77%) of these increased odds (indirect effect, OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.12; proportion accounted for: indirect effect on log odds scale/total effect on log odds scale=0.36). CONCLUSION: Migrants had higher odds of SARS-CoV-2 infection during the second wave compared with UK-born individuals and household overcrowding explained 36% of these increased odds. Policy interventions to reduce household overcrowding for migrants are needed as part of efforts to tackle health inequalities during the pandemic and beyond

Boundaries of Semantic Distraction: Dominance and Lexicality Act at Retrieval

Three experiments investigated memory for semantic information with the goal of determining boundary conditions for the manifestation of semantic auditory distraction. Irrelevant speech disrupted the free recall of semantic category-exemplars to an equal degree regardless of whether the speech coincided with presentation or test phases of the task (Experiment 1) and occurred regardless of whether it comprised random words or coherent sentences (Experiment 2). The effects of background speech were greater when the irrelevant speech was semantically related to the to-be-remembered material, but only when the irrelevant words were high in output dominance (Experiment 3). The implications of these findings in relation to the processing of task material and the processing of background speech is discussed