Managing Water under Uncertainty and Risk: The United Nations World Water Development Report 4

This report introduces new aspects of water issues: 1) it reintroduces the 12 challenge area reports that provided the foundation for the first two World Water Development Reports (WWDR); 2) 4 new reports on water quality, groundwater, gender, and desertification, land degradation and drought; 3) in recognition that the global challenges of water can vary considerably across countries and regions, a series of 5 regional reports have been included; 4) a deeper analysis of the main external forces of freshwater resources and possibilities for their future evolution; 5) managing water under uncertainty and risk

Recent Decisions

Comments on recent decisions by Edward J. Flattery, John E. Cosgrove, Thomas Broden, Richard H. Keen, and Ralph L. Fenderson, Jr

T-Lymphocyte Activation is Not Affected by the Mobilization of Senescent T-Cells into the Peripheral Blood Following an Acute Bout of Exercise

It is well recognized that individuals are at an increased risk of illness following an arduous exercise regime. Exercise may affect activation status of cells and play a pivotal role in defense against pathogenic invasion. CD69 is the earliest known expressed cell surface antigen of T-cell activation and is a reliable marker of cell activation status (Green et al. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 35, 582-588: 2003). Exercise is known to alter the frequency of senescent cells in the blood expressing the cell surface glycoprotein killer cell lectin-like receptor G1 (KLRG1), and are antigen-experienced and unable to clonally expand upon further antigenic stimulation (Simpson et al. J. Appl. Phys. 103, 396-401:2007), PURPOSE: To examine the contribution of senescent T-cells mobilized by exercise on the overall activation status of the peripheral blood T-cell pool following an acute bout of exercise. METHODS: Ten moderately trained males (age: 24.6 ± 4.8; height: 183.1 ± 6.7cm; mass: 72.8 ± 7.9kg; ; 61.3 ± 5.9 ml.kg-1.min-1) ran at speeds corresponding to 80% until volitional exhaustion (time: 36.1 ± 5.8 minutes). Blood lymphocytes isolated before (PRE), immediately after (POST) and 1 hour after (1HrPOST) exercise were stimulated for 4 hours in culture with and without the mitogen PMA and assessed for KLRG1 and CD69 expression and co-expression on CD3+, CD3+/CD4+ (CD4+) and CD3+/CD8+ (CD8+) lymphocyte subsets using 4-colour flow cytometry. RESULTS: No changes in CD69 GMFI were observed on total CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells POST or 1HrPOST exercise. The proportions of KLRG1+ cells among the total CD3+, CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell populations increased by 172%, 107% and 169% respectively POST exercise and fell below baseline values 1h later (p\u3c0.05). At all sample time points, CD69 GMFI was greater on stimulated KLRG1+ T-cells compared to KLRG1- cells (p\u3c0.05). CONCLUSION: We conclude that exercise does not affect the activation status of the total T-cell pool. Instead, the number of senescent cells expressing CD69 is greater than those that are not senescent at all times. This suggests that upon pathogenic invasion post-exercise

Reasons for and consequences of missed appointments in general practice in the UK: questionnaire survey and prospective review of medical records

Background Missed appointments are a common occurrence in primary care in the UK, yet little is known about the reasons for them, or the consequences of missing an appointment. This paper aims to determine the reasons for missed appointments and whether patients who miss an appointment subsequently consult their general practitioner (GP). Secondary aims are to compare psychological morbidity, and the previous appointments with GPs between subjects and a comparison group. Methods Postal questionnaire survey and prospective medical notes review of adult patients missing an appointment and the comparison group who attended appointments over a three week period in seven general practices in West Yorkshire. Results Of the 386 who missed appointments 122 (32%) responded. Of the 386 in the comparison group 223 (58%) responded, resulting in 23 case-control matched pairs with complete data collection. Over 40% of individuals who missed an appointment and participated said that they forgot the appointment and a quarter said that they tried very hard to cancel the appointment or that it was at an inconvenient time. A fifth reported family commitments or being too ill to attend. Over 90% of the patients who missed an appointment subsequently consulted within three months and of these nearly 60% consulted for the stated problem that was going to be presented in the missed consultation. The odds of missing an appointment decreased with increasing age and were greater among those who had missed at least one appointment in the previous 12 months. However, estimates for comparisons between those who missed appointments and the comparison group were imprecise due to the low response rate. Conclusion Patients who miss appointments tend to cite practice factors and their own forgetfulness as the main reasons for doing so, and most attend within three months of a missed appointment. This study highlights a number of implications for future research. More work needs to be done to engage people who miss appointments into research in a meaningful way

Computational approaches for understanding the diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson's disease

This study describes how the application of evolutionary algorithms (EAs) can be used to study motor function in humans with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and in animal models of PD. Human data is obtained using commercially available sensors via a range of non-invasive procedures that follow conventional clinical practice. EAs can then be used to classify human data for a range of uses, including diagnosis and disease monitoring. New results are presented that demonstrate how EAs can also be used to classify fruit flies with and without genetic mutations that cause Parkinson’s by using measurements of the proboscis extension reflex. The case is made for a computational approach that can be applied across human and animal studies of PD and lays the way for evaluation of existing and new drug therapies in a truly objective way

The Global Challenge of Antimicrobial Resistance: Insights from Economic Analysis

The prevalence of antimicrobial resistance (AR) limits the therapeutic options for treatment of infections, and increases the social benefit from disease prevention. Like an environmental resource, antimicrobials require stewardship. The effectiveness of an antimicrobial agent is a global public good. We argue for greater use of economic analysis as an input to policy discussion about AR, including for understanding the incentives underlying health behaviors that spawn AR, and to supplement other methods of tracing the evolution of AR internationally. We also discuss integrating antimicrobial stewardship into global health governance

The Grizzly, March 1, 1994

Up \u27Til Noone to Play at The Trappe • Last Semester\u27s Blood Drive a Success • Kane Encourages Support for Blood Drive • CIA Officer and his Wife Accused of Spying • Professor Profile: Keith Brand • Broughton Exhibit to Open in Berman • Senior Profile: Alan McCabe • The Snow Closing Debates, Continued • Letter to the Editor • To All Administrators, Faculty, Staff, and Other Interested Parties • Women\u27s Hoops Have Best Season Everhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1332/thumbnail.jp

Enhanced Identification of Postoperative Infections among Inpatients

Monitoring antimicrobial exposure and diagnosis codes for certain procedures identifies more postoperative infections than routine surveillance methods

Stomatal Opening Involves Polar, Not Radial, Stiffening Of Guard Cells

It has long been accepted that differential radial thickening of guard cells plays an important role in the turgor-driven shape changes required for stomatal pore opening to occur [1-4]. This textbook description derives from an original interpretation of structure rather than measurement of mechanical properties. Here we show, using atomic force microscopy, that although mature guard cells display a radial gradient of stiffness, this is not present in immature guard cells, yet young stomata show a normal opening response. Finite element modeling supports the experimental observation that radial stiffening plays a very limited role in stomatal opening. In addition, our analysis reveals an unexpected stiffening of the polar regions of the stomata complexes, both in Arabidopsis and other plants, suggesting a widespread occurrence. Combined experimental data (analysis of guard cell wall epitopes and treatment of tissue with cell wall digesting enzymes, coupled with bioassay of guard cell function) plus modeling lead us to propose that polar stiffening reflects a mechanical, pectin-based pinning down of the guard cell ends, which restricts increase of stomatal complex length during opening. This is predicted to lead to an improved response sensitivity of stomatal aperture movement with respect to change of turgor pressure. Our results provide new insight into the mechanics of stomatal function, both negating an established view of the importance of radial thickening and providing evidence for a significant role for polar stiffening. Improved stomatal performance via altered cell-wall-mediated mechanics is likely to be of evolutionary and agronomic significance